2024 Author: Gavin MacAdam | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 13:38
Eggplant is not only tasty, but also a medicinal vegetable (a storehouse of vitamins, mineral salts necessary for the human body). To get a stable, annual yield of a heat-loving crop, to extend the growing season, it should be grown in protected ground. How to master modern technology?
Biological features
A good harvest directly depends on knowledge of plant physiology. All eggplant agricultural technology is based on these features.
1. The height of the bush, depending on the variety, ranges from 30 to 140 cm. Tall varieties require a garter to a support, undersized ones stand perfectly on their own.
2. The bush is wide, strongly branched. It is better to plant in a square-nesting way, early varieties at a distance of 40 cm relative to each other, mid-ripening ones - 50 cm.
3. The plant is thermophilic. In the open field, it is possible to grow a good harvest in the southern regions. In the Middle Lane, heated or unheated greenhouses, hotbeds, film shelters are used for these purposes.
4. The growing season is long. In India, in its homeland, it is grown in a perennial culture. In other countries, it is used as an annual.
5. From germination to fruiting in early varieties, 100 days pass, in later varieties - 140 days. It is advisable to grow it through seedlings.
6. In technical ripeness, the fruits are dark purple in color. Seeds of albino varieties with an unusual white color have now appeared in stores.
7. Eggplant seeds are small, remain viable for no more than 4 years. It is recommended to use them fresh to get friendly shoots.
Growing seedlings
Sowing is carried out at the end of February in planting boxes at home on windows or in heated greenhouses. Use ready-made mixtures of high-moor peat with the addition of lime, mineral fertilizers. If desired, make the substrate yourself, mixing the original components.
The prepared soil is laid out in boxes, well moistened with water. Seeds are rarely spread over the surface, covered with soil 0.5 cm thick from above. Lightly tamp with hand, providing the seeds with good contact with the ground. Placed in a warm place, cover with foil.
For friendly germination, a temperature of at least 25 degrees is suitable. Seedlings appear in two weeks. If the seeds were germinated in a wet cloth before planting, they will sprout 2 times faster.
When sprouts appear, the plants are gradually hardened. The film is removed gradually, for several hours a day, in order to avoid the death of young animals. During this period, moderate watering is observed. Trying to prevent the soil from drying out or waterlogging. Excessive moisture will provoke black leg disease.
In the phase of 4 true leaves, eggplants dive into separate pots with a diameter of 8 cm. The root system develops freely in such a volume.
When growing seedlings, they are fed twice with complex readily soluble fertilizers "Zdraven" or "Kemira Lux". A balanced diet will help you get strong, healthy seedlings.
Transplant, care
Eggplants prefer light, fertile soil, in sunny areas. The best predecessors in greenhouses are cucumbers and green crops.
Before planting, the pits are covered with humus or compost using complex mineral fertilizers. One Kemira Lux matchbox or nitroammophoska, a glass of sifted ash are added to the bucket of the substrate. The resulting amount is spread over 3 holes.
Plants are transplanted carefully, trying to keep the root system from damage. A week later, the first feeding with the complex fertilizer "Zdraven" is given, normally one tablespoon per ten-liter bucket of water. It dissolves well, has a balanced composition, contains nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium, trace elements.
Before feeding, the plant is spilled with warm water from a watering can at a rate of 3 liters per 1 bush. Nutrient solutions are used 3 times per season: during flowering and fruit formation. Lack of nutrition, moisture in a crucial period can provoke the fall of flowers, ovaries.
After watering, the soil is loosened to prevent evaporation. Mulching with hardwood sawdust, bark, chopped straw or hay helps to retain moisture in the root zone and keeps the soil loose.
Harvesting should be done once a week, without waiting for overripe. Timely eating of large fruits contributes to the active growth of small ovaries. Cut with a knife or secateurs (stalks are hard, slightly lignified). In some varieties of eggplant, sharp, large thorns appear on the sepals. When harvesting a crop, precautions should be taken.
Additional shelters made of non-woven Agrila or Spunbond, used at the end of summer, will help to extend the ripening period in unheated greenhouses, greenhouses.
By observing all measures for growing eggplant, you can get a sufficient amount of this valuable food product. Prepared for future use, they diversify the menu in the winter season.
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