Post by hakaku on Jul 27, 2020 22:03:00 GMT -5
I mentioned in the other thread that I was also growing some eggplants. In my case though, they're "Italian Pink Bicolor Eggplants" sown in AG's everything pods and grown in an Farm Plus unit.
Planted: Around February 24, 2020
Sprouted: Around March 8, 2020 (~2 weeks)
First flowers: Around mid-April (~2 months)
First fruit harvest: June 28, 2020 (~5 months), although I should've harvested them at the beginning of June since many of the fruits were overripe at this point
As of posting, it's July 27 and the plants are still producing lots of flowers and more fruit. Overall, it's been a fun project, but there's definitely a lot more waiting than with tomatoes or peppers.
Some things learned along the way:
- Thorns: I never knew this, but apparently many varieties of eggplants have small thorns on the stem, the leave and the fruit base. Turns out, the variety I'm growing also has thorns, ouch!
- Fruit colors: It's been fun to see how this variety has produced eggplants of different colors. Some are completely white, some bear a mix of white and pink, and others are completely pink.
- Taste: This variety tastes great! I would describe it as a rich creamy eggplant taste. Even the overripe fruit tasted good.
- Size: The plants are absolutely perfect for the size of the Farm Plus model. One alone might be okay for a Bounty model (especially if you trim down the top like you would for peppers), but I definitely wouldn't plant it in any smaller unit than that.
- Support: The plants are mostly strong enough to support themselves, but once the fruit starts growing, the plant might lean and any branches supporting fruit might droop. I had to tie one of them to the bar to prevent it from tipping over.
- Flower drop: Eggplants are very similar to pepper plants in that they'll experience some flowers drop from the stem entirely. Overall though, the plants do produce enough flowers so a few dropping isn't much of a cause to be concerned.
- pH problems: One of the biggest problems I found over time was that the pH level of the water would drop to around 3.0-4.0, which is far too acidic. The first sign I noticed was discoloration/yellowing in the plants' leaves. Using a pH meter, I was able to confirm the acidity of the water and remediate using a hydroponic-safe product called "General Hydroponics pH Up". That said, the pH often drops overnight so I've had to be extra careful.
Photo album:
What the two plants looked like around April | Some of the first fruit (I call this one Pinocchio) | What early forming fruit looks like |
What the flowers look like | Showing some bigger white fruits. Also notice the dropped flowers. | Pinocchio getting bigger |
This one looked more like a pumpkin | A pinkish-white fruit. Also notice the yellowing of the leaves. | Both white and pink fruit side-by-side |
What the plants looked like around June | First harvest in June (whoops, a bit late!). Yellowing is a sign that the fruits are going overripe (they're still perfectly good to eat) | Close-up of the pink one |
Alternative link if the above don't render correctly: imgur.com/a/wBrotFm
Bonus food photos:
