A Gardeners Forum Forums Gardening Reference Gardening in 2004 Eggplant

I have an eggplant in a container and I'm afraid the container may be too small. There is already one bloom on the plant and I was wondering if it would be a bad idea to transplant this plant to a bigger container? I don't know if it's the hot weather or the container is too small really but the plant seems to be limp. In the hot weather I try to make sure the plant has enough water other than that I don't water it every day. Can anyone give me any suggestions?

Container plants are easy to pot up to larger pots. Carefully pull it out of the pot. If you see tons of roots, then it needs repotting. If the roots look skimpy it doesn't. If you decide it does need a bigger pot, choose one that is only 1-2 inches in diameter larger than the one it is in now to insure that it won't stay too wet when watered. You can always pot up again if it outgrows the larger pot.

Sometimes, new tender growth will look limp in warmer weather even if there is sufficient water, but it should acclimate to warmer temperatures after a week or so.

JustAGirl,

Welcome to The Gardener's Forum, A CyberFamily of Gardeners from around the World.

Just curious, how big the container is and where it is located? We are having an extremely hot weather in the Bay Area the last few days, which could be one reason for the problem.

Try to move the[eggplant]container to a partially shaded location (under a tree, side of a house but away from the wall[the wall reflects heat]and keep the soil moist and fertilize regularly.

The soil in the container dries out much faster because of heat, wind, reflected heat from walls, fences,& patio cement.

I have been growing vegetables in containers for over ten years. Right now, I have 12 Japanese eggplants in 5 gal. containers and they are doing very well, in fact I harvested twice this week.

I also have jalapeno & sweet bell peppers, yardlong string beans, Kabocha squash, New Zealand spinach, water cress, garlic, onions and leeks also in containers.

I just recently planted more Asparagus beans (yardlong string beans), peas, cilantro, radish and cabbage (both Copenhagen & Chinese variety).

Thanks for replying Papito! I don't recall what size container the eggplant was in but I have already transplanted it to a 5 gal. container. It is doing well now. I have it on my back patio and was actually trying to decide weather I should put it under the tree I have in my backyard but I wasn't sure thinking it needed at least 6-8 hours of sun a day.

I'm just an amateur gardener. I have all of my vegetable plants in containers and my flowers in the ground. Right now I'm growing Ace,Early Girl and Roma tomatoes, Green and Purple Bell pepper, Jalepeno and some kind of Thai chili, Black Beauty Eggplant, garlic chives, dill, White Lisbon onions. My flowers consist of just about everything. Cosmos, Baby's Breath, Marigolds, Helichrysums, Dahlia, Bachelors Button, Begonias, Snap Dragons, Moss rose, Jasmine, Nasturtium, Lavender, lily of the Nile, Forget me Nots etc...etc.

If you have any tips for me with any of these plants I'd be real appreciative.

Papito, I'm brand new to this forum and I have a question for you. I feel silly asking this, but for the first time, I'm growing Japanese eggplant and I have one that's approx. six inches long. Should I harvest them, or better yet, when do you harvest yours???? Many, many thanks.

In my case, I harvest the eggplants when they are 5" to 6",[ and before they turn from shiny to dull purple].

Do you have favorite eggplant recipe(s) you want to share? If so, could you post it (them)in the Recipe Section?

Thanks, Papito

Thanks, I'm ready to pick! My favorite way to make eggplant is on the grill, little olive oil. I have a killer ratatouille recipe. I'll dig it out and post it in the recipe section. Thank you again for your help.

I'll Have to go check out the recipe's, I Love eggplant, all I raise is the Italian heirloom variety, ROSA BIANCA, they are Dee- lissy-us