Aubergines

[vitruvius8]

I am growing aubergines for the first time and wondered if anyone knows anything about them? Do you need to take off side shoots or anything like that? do they need feed? they are all about a foot tall at the moment. Any ideas would be gratefully received.
thanks.

[vitruvius8]

[Tee Gee]

I grow them undercover like this
; http://www.thegardenersalmanac.co.uk/Data/Aubergine/Aubergine.htm

Watch them closely they are a magnet for whitefly!

[Alex133]

Suggest you grow under cover unless living in a real hot spot. I've tried outside and they are always useless. I just transplant into 2 ltre/9" pots, don't pinch out, feed when fruits start to form and hope for the best. I mainly grow Caliope which has smart mauve and white sort of egg-shaped aubergines.

[irridium]

i don't know why i bother with aubergine as they never get big nor do they stay healthy. first yr I did them, they got obliterated by the nasty whitefly (killed off the chillis and peppers too) so the second yr, I moved them out of the plastic greenhouse and into pots outside. For two years running, I think they only grown two fruits per plant and they weren't v. soft-but-firm like the ones you'd find in the s/market. I've got about 8 in the g/h atm, still awaiting to be potted up. Maybe I should freecycle them as I'm sure they don't like me (well, I know it's the plastic walk-in-g/house that's at fault - not enough ventilation) :-[ :-[ :-[

[vitruvius8]

Thanks for all the information, very useful. At least i have some idea now ! I have some in the polytunnel and some in the greenhouse, hope they do OK, Thanks again. ;D

[caroline7758]

I've never had much success with them and last year I said I wouldn't bother again, but then I saw a packet of seeds for 50p in the Wyevale sale...... ::)

[tim]

Tee Gee - I  highly respect your expertise & advice but - for Aubergines -  I have to disagree - not for the first time!

I never pinch out &, typically, I get 15-20 fruit per plant.

= Tim

[vitruvius8]

Oh dear ! now that's chucked a spanner in the works !!!  :'(

[Tee Gee]

Oh dear ! now that's chucked a spanner in the works !!! 

No not really Tim has a point!

As I recall he grows a number of varieties e.g. Large & small I usually only grow the large varieties( easier to stuff and nice on the show bench) so I limit the number of fruits on each plant by nipping out.

Last year I grew a small variety and left it to it's own resources and got lots of fruit( didn't t count how many)

So I think it's horses for courses here,the choice is up to the grower.

I am currently revising my website,must remember to point this out in the revised edition

[vitruvius8]

Thanks, i can see both points, just have to decide which way to go !! decisions , decisions!! :P

[1066]

I've tried them before and got next to nothing  :'(  This year I'm trying them in the GHouse, and was wondering about pollination - do you think I will need to hand pollinate?

Thanks  :)

[tim]

Agree, Tee Gee - & you can't do Nigella's Involtini with the thin ones!

But I don't agree with the books which say you must limit the number to 5.

[Tee Gee]

This is how I have covered the subject in my revised website;

Week 26 onwards; If growing large varieties, remove any side-shoots as they appear, this is not necessary with smaller varieties.

Similarly with large varieties; allow only four or five fruits to form/ripen on each plant, and use them as soon as possible after harvesting.

Small varieties can be left to produce as many fruits as the plant can sustain.

Commence feeding fortnightly with a full strength high potash liquid.


Alternatively; feed fortnightly once the third fruit has set.



If growing outdoors commence feeding when the first fruit forms.



Would you agree with that Tim?

[antipodes]

And what if you don't know if they are large varieties or not?  ???
I just let mine get on with it anyway, they are outdoors, sometimes they work, sometimes not. This year they seem to be growing quite well.

[chriscross1966]

THe Long Purples will fruit outdoors though fewer fruits than indoors..... trying several other varieties this year adn surrounded them with ant bait stations, marigolds and yeloow sticky traps (or ratehr there are four traps equally spaced through the greenhouse plus the fifth one in the packet is directly over the aubergines....

chrisc