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In the Urals, eggplant is cultivated as an annual plant, although it was “supposed” to be perennial. But for several years, eggplant can afford to grow in a warm homeland, and not in cold Our Country. If you count how many horticultural crops require special conditions due to their origin from the southern warm regions, then the question naturally arises “what would vegetarians eat in northern countries if a few thousand years ago humanity would not have cultivated practically inedible plants?” But for our common happiness, the plants were cultivated.
Eggplant for quite a long time was among the conditionally edible plants due to the high content of solanine in it. In Soviet times, when there was only one variety of Almaz eggplant in the assortment and they were already either overripe or stored for too long, the requirement to peel the eggplant from the skin and boil for a while to remove bitterness was firmly established in the culinary recipes of the former Union . In addition, the northern regions could only use purchased eggplants. There was no question of any cultivation of this garden crop in the Trans-Urals.
Everything has changed these days. Eggplant varieties have already been bred, not only not containing solanine, but also capable of growing beyond the Urals even in open ground, although only experienced gardeners are still at risk to start growing eggplants in this area.
For cultivation in the Ural region, one has to avoid late-ripening varieties that do not have time to grow, choosing suitable varieties among early-ripening or mid-ripening eggplants, taking into account their keeping quality, productivity and their own taste preferences, but also growing them through seedlings. Otherwise, eggplants may not have time to grow to the stage of technical ripeness, during which they are suitable for food.
Selection of seeds and soil for seedlings
It is better not to buy eggplant seeds from the market, as this cannot guarantee their quality and the absence of infection. Reputable brand stores will offer you quality eggplant seeds suitable for your region. By carefully reading the annotations, you yourself can draw certain conclusions about the suitability of a particular eggplant variety for growing on your site.
Often the microclimate of one area is very different from the microclimate of another. Such a nuance often strikes the gardeners themselves: our tomatoes grow well, but our neighbor constantly disappears, but there is always nowhere to put cucumbers. Here it remains only to change the crop. But at the first attempts to plant certain vegetables, everything will have to be selected empirically. Eggplant is no exception.
Soil for eggplant seedlings is best bought at the store. A ready-made mixture intended for eggplant usually has optimal acidity, air permeability, density, and water permeability.
Growing seedlings
When choosing the time when you can plant eggplant seedlings in the Urals, you need to remember about the frequent return frosts in this region. Usually eggplant seedlings are planted in a permanent place from the last week of May to mid-June. Since eggplants are characterized by very slow growth in the first half of the growing season, seeds for seedlings are sown from late February to mid-March.
Preparation of eggplant seeds
The germination rate of such seeds is higher than that of annuals, and two-year-old seeds also germinate faster.
Before sowing seeds in the ground, it is necessary to disinfect them and stimulate growth. For disinfection, the seeds must be soaked for half an hour in a 2% solution of potassium permanganate. After disinfection, the seeds are soaked for two hours in a solution of minerals.
If you bought coated or encrusted seeds, their pre-treatment is not required. Such seeds have already been decontaminated and nutrients have been added to their shell.
What is the difference between encrusted seeds and coated (granulated)
Recently, quite a few new ways of treating seeds for better germination have appeared. In stores, you can find pelleted and encrusted seeds, seeds treated with plasma or laser. The last two methods have not yet been worked out, in addition, laser treatment makes sense if this is done no later than 10 days before sowing. It is unlikely that such seeds will appear in retail sales.
Dried
Usually drageeing is carried out with small seeds, facilitating their sowing. During this operation, the seeds are covered in layers with growth stimulants, microelements, drugs for the prevention of diseases. In the end, a ball is obtained, in the center of which is a seed.
The recently appeared gel dragee, the purpose of which is to regulate the flow of water to the seed, did not cause much enthusiasm among many gardeners.
inlaid
During encrustation, the seeds are covered with a water-soluble shell containing growth stimulants and disinfectants. The seed size remains the same. This operation is performed with large seeds; it has been known to farmers for several decades. As a result of incrustation, the seeds are painted in different colors. Often the manufacturer uses a “signature” color, confirming that the original seeds are in the package.
Sowing eggplant seeds
For sowing, you must first prepare containers of a sufficiently large size. Since eggplants do not like transplants very much, it is better to plant them immediately in separate containers.
After filling the containers with earth, the soil is slightly shed and eggplant seeds are placed to a depth of 1 to 1,5 cm. Sprinkle with earth and water again.
Someone plants one seed at a time, many prefer to plant two seeds at once and then remove a weak sprout. The second case is a safety net if one of the seeds does not sprout.
After sowing, seedling containers are covered with a film and placed in a room with a temperature of 25-28 °. After germination, the film is removed and the temperature is reduced to +17 for two weeks. If you do not lower the temperature, the seedlings will stretch excessively. Plus, the lower temperature will harden the seedlings. After hardening, you can set the temperature to +27 during the day and 10 degrees lower at night.
Installing such a regime in the house is not a trivial task. On the video you can see how an experienced gardener from the Northern Urals gets out of the situation.
Although eggplants love moisture, they cannot stand stagnant water. Therefore, eggplant seedlings need watering only after the top layer has dried. Water should be settled and warm. Drainage holes help to avoid stagnant water in seedlings. In pots specially made for seedlings, such holes are provided initially. When using improvised containers for seedlings, such as yogurt cups, cut bottles, egg shells, etc., holes must be made before the container is filled with soil.
Caring for eggplant seedlings
Eggplants are photophilous plants. The length of daylight hours for them should be 12 hours, which is impossible in winter in the conditions of the northern regions. To provide seedlings with normal growth conditions, it is necessary to additionally illuminate it with fluorescent lamps or phyto-lamps specially designed for plants.
For high-quality cultivation of seedlings, it will be necessary to feed them in the phase of the first leaves and before planting in a permanent place. Usually no more feeding is required, but if the seedlings look sluggish, additional feeding can be done.
With proper cultivation, seedlings are ready for transplanting to a permanent place in two months.
But if you planted eggplant seeds in early March, then it may turn out that it is still too cool in May for planting seedlings right under the open sky, albeit in a warm garden.
It should be noted that although eggplants are considered southern plants that can be grown in the north only in greenhouse conditions, in fact, in greenhouses they produce green mass instead of fruits, and bloom and set fruits much better in the open.
In order to be able to grow eggplants in open beds, but at the same time avoid the danger of freezing, seedlings should be gradually accustomed to cold street air, and it is better to plant them on warm beds under a film cover. With the onset of warm days, the film is removed and the eggplants are left to grow in the fresh air.
With the right agricultural technology, you will remove the first eggplants in July.