Image by Genmewcaugsa (CC BY-SA 3.0).

Scientific Name: Solanum melongena

Common Name: Eggplant 'Early Long Purple'

Family: Solanaceae

Origin:

Early Long Purple is a traditional, open-pollinated Italian heirloom eggplant variety first grown in 1857.

Culinary Uses:

The flesh of Early Long Purple eggplants is firm with a delicious, mild flavour.  These qualities make this eggplant ideal for stir-fries, but they can also be used in pasta dishes, vegetable bakes or roasted.

Growing Tips:

Choose a growing site that receives full sun or very light shade.  Planting in too shady a location will cause eggplants to become leggy and produce few fruit.  Prepare beds prior to sowing by digging through lots of organic fertiliser, compost, well rotted manures and/or worm castings.  Mulch around eggplants well to retain moisture, keep their root systems cool and reduce competition from weeds.  Pinch out growing tips once eggplants are big enough to encourage bushier plants with more fruit.  Tie the stem of eggplant plants loosely against a stake to support the heavy fruits and prevent them from falling over in strong winds.  Water eggplants thoroughly to allow the moisture to reach their deep root systems.  Leave the soil to dry slightly between waterings to reduce the chance of diseases such as verticillium wilt and root rot.  Early Long Purple is an eggplant variety that grows well in cooler regions of Australia.  Picking eggplants regularly will encourage the plants to produce more flowers

When To Sow:

Sow Early Long Purple eggplant seeds from September to January in temperate and subtropical regions of Australia.  In tropical regions of Australia sow during the dry season from May to July.

How To Sow:

Sow Early Long Purple eggplant seeds 6mm deep spacing plants about 50cm apart to allow plenty of room for growth.

Germination Time:

Early Long Purple eggplants take between 5 and 14 days to germinate from seed.

Time To Harvest:

Your first Early Long Purple eggplants should be ready to pick 10 to 12 weeks after sowing the seeds, depending on growing conditions.

Flower of Eggplant 'Early Long Purple'.