I planted out some aubergine plants under cloches about a month ago and they are now looking a bit sick. The bottom leaves are yellowing and they don't really appear to be growing at all.
To add insult to injury, I gave some spare plants to my lottie neighbour and hers (not under cloches, but planted through black plastic) are going great guns.
I wondered whether the problem might be that they are planted quite close to a large apple tree and that they were deprived of water. I therefore mulched them with some compost and put a container of water under the cloches to keep up humidity. Despite watering them religiously every day that it doesn't rain they don't seem to be improving.
Before I planted them I was quite prepared to accept the fact that they are really a greenhouse crop and that planting outside was a bit dodgy. However, I am really miffed that my neighbour seems to be having so much success without even so much as a cloche.
Any ideas to rescue them would be very gratefully received.
try liquid seaweed feed, it tends to perk up most things.
my aubergines are doing ok, and in flower, although the slugs seem to love the leaves.
last year my lottie neighbour had great results, but they seem to like a lot of water.
I've got some aubergines in 30cm pots outside and some in the greenhouse and they all have flowers and mini fruits.
I am sure that having yours near to the apple tree will not only dry the roots out but shade them too much. I would put yours in pots filled with growbag compost and put them in a sunny spot and keep them well watered. You could try it with a couple and see how they go.
They say revenge is a dish best served cold!
Whilst my aubergine plants are still looking a bit pathetic, they have produced lots of lovely big fruit. My neighbours on the other hand are puny in comparison.