How to grow eggplant seedlings at home

What varieties of eggplant to choose for seedlings

Eggplants are very thermophilic, and the main problem in the middle latitudes is a short summer. In order to guarantee a crop in the open field, you need to choose early varieties (they ripen 75 – 100 days) or mid-ripening (100 – 120 days). Late varieties that mature in 120-180 days can only be grown in greenhouses in cool regions.

Also, pay attention to the color of the fruit. Traditional varieties are dark purple in color, but these varieties are often bitter. But white eggplants are never bitter. And their taste is much richer – it resembles mushrooms or even chicken meat.

How to grow eggplant seedlings

Since eggplants are capricious, they need to provide the most comfortable conditions – there are no trifles in care!

When to sow seeds

Eggplant seedlings are planted in the ground at the age of 65 – 70 days (1), and the timing of sowing seeds depends on the expected date of planting. Plus, you need to add a week, and even better 10 days – so many seeds usually germinate.

Eggplants can be planted in the greenhouse already in mid-April, therefore, the seeds must be sown from February 15 to March 1. If you plan to plant them in a garden under cover, then it will not be earlier than May 10 – the soil should warm up well. In this case, the seeds should be sown from March 10 to March 20. And if eggplants are grown without shelter, then landing in open ground is possible no earlier than June 5 (before this time there are still frosts). And the seeds then need to be sown from 5 to 15 April.

It may seem that April for sowing eggplant seeds is very late. But in fact, no – you should not rush here, because overgrown seedlings take root worse, get sick for a long time and the ripening of the crop is greatly delayed.

What to grow

Eggplants are very painful to transplant (2): their large leaves evaporate a large amount of water, and if the roots are damaged during transplantation, and this is inevitable, they will not be able to provide water to the entire green mass. Plants may die. That is why the seeds must be sown immediately in separate cups with a volume of 0,5 liters.

Eggplant seeds are quite small, so they need to be planted to a depth of 0,5 – 1 cm.

What kind of soil do you need

Many summer residents do not particularly bother with the soil, they buy universal soil for seedlings in the store. However, this is not the best option, because it is based on peat, and it dries out very quickly. It is worth skipping watering once, and you can say goodbye to eggplants.

Therefore, it is better to prepare the soil yourself. The best option is a mixture of garden soil, river sand and humus in a ratio of 1: 1: 2.

The finished mixture must be steamed in a water bath or calcined in the oven for 30 minutes to kill the spores of pathogenic fungi and pests that are always present in garden soil.

When the soil has cooled, add 2 cups of wood ash and 4 tbsp. spoons of superphosphate – phosphorus will not allow seedlings to stretch.

Preparation of seeds for sowing

In order for eggplant seeds to sprout together and quickly, they need to be properly prepared.

Disinfect. To do this, it is useful to soak the seeds in a strong solution of potassium permanganate for 20 minutes – it will kill the infection on the surface. After soaking, rinse them well in running water.

Treat with growth stimulants. This is especially true if the seeds have been stored for a long time. The easiest and most effective way is to soak them for a day in aloe juice mixed with water in a 1: 1 ratio.

germinate. In this case, seedlings will appear much faster. It is most convenient to germinate the seeds in a damp cloth – wrap them in it, put them in a plastic container, close the lid tightly so that the moisture does not evaporate, and put them in a warm place with a temperature of 25 ° C. Once the seeds have hatched, they can be sown.

How to care for eggplant seedlings

For good growth, eggplant seedlings need to provide several important conditions.

Lighting. It is best to grow eggplant seedlings on the southern windows or with phytolamps backlit (optimally – from 8.00 to 20.00). Illumination is also needed if the seeds were sown in February. Even on the south window! Because the February sun is inactive, its light is not enough for eggplants. You can remove the backlight no earlier than mid-April.

And don’t forget to wash your windows – clean glass lets in 15% more light than dirty glass.

Temperature. The temperature for the growth of seedlings should be in the range of 20 – 25 ° C. And it is important that the plants do not stand in a draft or under an open window – they really do not like sudden changes in temperature.

Watering. Eggplants are more moisture-loving than tomatoes and peppers (3). And their watering of eggplants depends on the phase of their growth. From the moment of germination until the appearance of 2 true leaves – 1 time per week. And then – 2 – 3 times a week. At the same time, it is important that the earthen lump is completely wet, in transparent cups this is easy to see. But water should not stagnate at the bottom of the pot (this leads to rotting of the roots), so do not forget to make more holes in the bottom of the glass.

And one more important point: eggplants should be watered strictly under the root, water should not fall on the leaves – this can provoke an outbreak of disease. And the water must be at room temperature – cold from the tap is not suitable for irrigation.

Popular questions and answers

We talked about growing eggplants with agronomist-breeder Svetlana Mikhailova.

Sources of

1. A group of authors, ed. Polyanskoy A.M. and Chulkova E.I. Tips for gardeners // Minsk, Harvest, 1970 – 208 p.
2. Chirkov L.S. Gardener’s Handbook // Samara, Publishing House OK KP RSFSR, 1991 – 265 p.
3. Shuin K.A., Zakraevskaya N.K., Ippolitova N.Ya. Garden from spring to autumn // Minsk, Uradzhay, 1990 – 256 p.