Which varieties are you growing this year?

[mdvpc]

I am growing udmalbet, ping tung long, casper and applegreen.

[Miss_Mudcat]

Last year was my first go at growing eggplants. I bought a mixed pack of 4 varieties at the store. Black Beauty was the only OP variety. The others were Cresent Moon, Purple Blush and Blue Marble. The last two were my favorites. The cresent moon was ugly - every bug bite, bump and scratch showed up and turned brown. The black beauty was just too big for my tastes. The PB and BM were pretty, tasty and just the right size for me.

This year I am trying several OP varities. Pingtung Long, Slim Jim, Italian Pink Bi-Color, Listada de Gandia, and Thai Green. The germination was pretty low on all of them, but especially the Pingtung Long. Perhaps I just didn't keep them warm, humid enough for long enough during germination?

[Reign]

I'm growing:

New York Early (I really like growing this one)
Goyo Kumba (because I've failed with it for the last 4 years. I'm not defeated until I quit or run out of seed)
Brazilian Oval Orange (because I've had the seeds and never grown it)

I'm sure I'll end up with Black Beauty in a pot for a neighbor.

Udumalapet looks so interesting. I'm tempted.

[rxkeith]

i'm growing ichiban, diamond, applegreen, and some variety from iran i have no clue what it is like. seeds came from the mother of a young iranian lady my wife is tutoring in english. growing eggplant here is quite a challenge. they are a flea beetle, and colorado potato beetle magnet. if they manage to survive those pests, then there is the weather issue. too cool temps slow them way down. i've only had 2 years out of 7 where i've had a decent crop. am i going to give up? hell no! i'm italian. growing eggplant is like a rule for us. its just something we do.

keith in calumet

[Sorellina]

Ciao Keith,

Molto comico, paesano

[nctomatoman]

With so many to choose from, it was hard to narrow down those I am going to grow in my driveway pots...but this is the latest list.

1. Bianca di Imola
2. a long pink from a packet of seed a work friend gave me (south Pacific country, forgot which, foreign labeling, so at this point calling it Jay's Pink)
3. Thai White Ribbed
4. Antiguan
5. Apple Green
6. Black Beauty
7. Green Giant
8. Millionaire
9. Listada di Gandia
10. Prosperosa
11. Rosita
12. Slim Jim
13. Turkish Orange
14. a real odd one - Bed of Nails, a spiny, thorny plant that produces fuzzy, inedible fruit - different from Sol. pyracantha - from seed from a fruit a friend gave me. - here is a link to some info -

http://www.sc.edu/usctimes/articles/..._of_nails.html

15 - not an eggplant, but can't do without - Cossack Pineapple sweet husk tomato.

Some of the above are hybrids, I want to try them out and photograph them; a few are the end of the seeds of a few OPs that I need fresh seed from.

[giardiniere]

Originally Posted by rxkeith

am i going to give up? hell no! i'm italian. growing eggplant is like a rule for us. its just something we do.

keith in calumet

Exactly!! All I can figure is that flea beetles must be Italian too.... because they like eggplant as much as I do.... they just prefer the leaves.

[cdntomato]

Keith, if you grow eggplants in black pots (a much easier way to get mature fruit in short season areas), then consider creating a tulle 'tent' to pull up over top of the plant. An otherwise useless commercial tomato cage works a treat to provide a frame. Simply tie/untie the tulle topknot as needed.

The pot and 'tent' create the much warmer environment needed by eggplants; the tulle eliminates the bug problems. The bonus: you now have a plant-sized blossom bag if you want to save pure seed (eggplants being inbreeding like tomatoes).

Also worth trying are eggplants like Morden Midget (full sized Italian-type on dwarf plant from Morden, Manitoba!) Blackie, Black Robe, which were bred for short season, cold climates.

Jennifer

[Love2Troll]

My first year ever growing eggplant.

Only planted 6 seeds each of Thai Long Green & Long Purple. 5 TLG and 6 LP sprouted and most now have 4 true leaves. Rather cool how they partially close their leaves and point them skyward at night. Compared to tomato they seem rather slow growing, kinda like peppers.

jt

[MawkHawk]

My first year with eggplants as well. I'm growing Diamond, Fairy Tale, Little Spooky and Rosa Bianca. 2 plants each, 1 set in my little greenhouse and the other in my garden.

[angelique]

Hi All,

I am growing:

Udumalapet
Rosa Bianca
Japanese Long
Kermit

This is my first year growing these varieties. Wish me luck.

Cheers,

Angelique

[PNW_D]

I'm growing just one - Fairytale F1. Thought I'd read good things about it somewhere, and I see Craig grew it last year - very productive and a nice size for a container.

Craig- are you trying F2?

I didn't start any from seed this year - just no room after all my tomatoes . However on a recent trip to Kelowna, one of the market vendors had one just the right size for travel ; now if the squirrels will just stay clear the weather is definitely cooperating!!

Jennifer - Morden Midget is on my grow list for next year

[nctomatoman]

Hi, D -

I decided not to try Fairly Tale F2 this year. I've grown out a number of F2s the past few years - some have shown variation, others look very much like the hybrid - but with such a small sample size (only 1 or 2 plants), I am sure that the full range of possibilities hasn't yet been seen. Calliope, Machiaw and Purple Rain looked very similar to the hybrids; Orient Charm and Lavendar Touch showed more variation.

The nice thing is that everything in these experiments is edible - and delicious!

[gflynn]

Black Bell from Johnny's has served me well so I am doing 2 of those on my deck. It starting to grow nicely with the warming weather and I think being in a pot is a plus.

Greg