How to grow eggplant from seeds to harvest

Quick facts

Eggplant needs warm conditions, and will not thrive during a cool season.
If you buy plants from a garden center, choose sturdy plants up to a foot tall.
Start eggplant seeds about 8 weeks before planting outside.
Transplant outdoors after nighttime low temperatures have risen above 50°F.
Install plant supports at the time of planting.
Use mulch to heat the soil and reduce root damage.
Harvest the eggplants when they have reached mature size, clipping them off with sharp shears.

Soil

Have your soil tested.
A soil pH between 5.5 and 7.5 is best.
Phosphorus (P) and potassium (K) should be applied according to soil test recommendations.
Improve your soil by adding well-rotted manure or compost in spring or fall.
Too much nitrogen fertilization will lead to plants that are bushy, leafy and slow to bear fruit.
Do not use any fertilizer containing a weed killer, as it may kill your vegetable plants.
Eggplants benefit from black plastic mulch because it helps to heat the soil and reduces root damage. Do not apply mulch before the soil has warmed in the spring.

Types

If you buy plants from a garden center, choose sturdy plants up to a foot tall. They should have stems at least the width of a pencil and the leaves should be closely spaced up the stem. Do not buy plants with spots on their leaves, as you could be bringing disease into your garden.

Starting Seeds

Plant seeds 1/4 inch deep, in flats containing sterile, soilless germination mix.
Use a heating mat to keep the flat at 75°F to 85°F until seedlings emerge.
Carefully monitor potting mix moisture, as heating mats will dry the mix out faster.
Provide bright overhead light for the seedlings.
Thin or transplant seedlings after true leaves appear so that seedlings are 2 to 3 inches apart, and grow under bright light. Without enough bright light directly overhead, the stems of the little plants will lean over.
Eggplants may start to flower while still indoors. Pinch off the flower clusters until the plants are in the garden.
When plants are about 5 inches tall and 8 to 10 weeks old, reduce watering.
Place plants outside where they will receive wind protection and a couple hours of sunlight.
Gradually expose them to more sunlight over the next week or two, bringing them indoors if night temperatures drop below 55°F.

Choose a location in your garden where you have not grown tomatoes, potatoes, peppers, and eggplants for the past 3 or 4 years. Practice crop rotation.
Space eggplants 18 inches apart, in rows 30 to 36 inches apart.

Although they are related, eggplants are much less cold hardy than tomatoes. If you plant your eggplants out before overnight low temperatures are consistently above 50°F, they will suffer from the cold. They may never recover and bear fruit.
Transplant in late afternoon or on a cloudy, calm day.
Drought temperatures above 90°F, and night temperatures below 60°F, can cause poor flowering.
Fruit are also vulnerable to sunburn, and develop white patches if there is not enough leaf surface to cover fruit and protect them from sunlight exposure during hot, dry weather.

Watering

Consistent soil moisture levels produce the best quality fruit. When soil moisture levels are inconsistent, eggplant can become bitter and yields will be low.
Poor moisture levels can also cause blossom-end rot.
Avoid overhead sprinkling. Wet leaves are more disease prone, and soil splashed up onto the leaves can contain disease spores.
Light watering can promote shallow root development, increase the crop’s vulnerability to hot weather and drought stress, and reduce fruit quality.
If the plant does not receive one inch of rain weekly, soak the soil thoroughly at least once a week.
Very sandy soils may require watering more often.
Too fast a rate of irrigation will run off heavier soils without moisture sinking in.

Weeds

Frequent, shallow cultivation with a garden hoe or trowel will kill weeds before they become a problem.
Cultivate just deeply enough to cut the weeds off below the surface of the soil.
Mulch with herbicide-free grass clippings, weed-free straw, or other organic material to a depth of 3 to 4 inches to help prevent weed growth, decreasing the need for frequent cultivation.

Harvest and Storage

Harvest the eggplants when they have reached mature size, clipping them off with sharp shears.
Do not try to pull the fruit from the plant. You are likely to damage both the fruit and the plant.
As you continue to harvest, the plant will continue to produce flowers and set more fruit.
Do not let the eggplants hang on the plant once they are mature, because their quality will decline. Pick when the skins are still shiny and the fruit is firm.
Later in the season, cold nights will injure fruit left on the plant. Cover the plants if there are low temperatures in the forecast.
Eggplants will keep for about a week in the refrigerator. They are sensitive to the cold.

Source: https://extension.umn.edu/vegetables/growing-eggplant#harvest-and-storage-190564

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