Eggplant is more sensitive to cold temperatures or temperature extremes than either tomatoes or peppers, generally. You should harden-off your transplants before setting out, but bear in mind that eggplant plants don't respond well to becoming root-bound in their pots. So you should allow adequate time  when you specify your delivery date.

Eggplant transplants should only be set in well-warmed soil late in spring, after the weather has really settled.  Rich, well-drained, well watered soil, and plenty of really warm weather are required to bring in an eggplant crop. The plants don't seem to require staking, but you might watch larger fruit closely and give the branch some support if it seems needed.

Flea beetle is an especially bad pest of eggplant. Young transplants should be protected with remay floating row cover until the plants are growing vigorously and the flea-beetle season appears to be over. There are no doubt numerous chemical sprays that would be effective against this pest, but we don't use chemicals and cannot recommend one.

Eggplant plants are fairly heavy feeders, so they should probably be given a boost once or twice in the course of the growing season. Fairly high nitrogen fertilizers like compost are probably best applied early in the season, with a more balanced fertilizer later on.

Eggplant flowers are a bit showier than those of peppers. The fruit set on just like those of peppers or tomatoes. Eggplant should always be harvested before the fruit loses its glossy sheen. Orange or red varieties should usually be harvested before they show their ripe color. Some eggplant varieities are prone to develop bitterness if grown in poor conditions; it is then best to harvest a few fruits very young, until the gardener has some idea how mature they should by picked, according to each individual's tastes.

Several of the varieties we offer are from Southeast Asia or Brazil. It should be assumed that these varieties require a really long, warm growing season. Day-length may also affect eggplant, so these low-latitude varieties should probably be attemped only in the South, except as an experiment.

Enjoy your eggplant varieties, and let us know how they performed in your garden!

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