In general, this purple eggplant plant can grow in various environmental conditions. However, for maximum results, you have to pay attention to several things, such as climate to soil type and conditions. This plant requires sufficient sunlight, so it is suitable to be planted in the dry season.
How to plant purple eggplant so that it bears heavy fruit must pay attention to the right steps. Starting from land preparation, preparing seeds, sowing, planting, maintaining, to harvesting must be followed carefully.
Land Preparation
The first way to plant purple eggplant is to prepare the land. As previously mentioned, the growing medium plays an important role in how to grow this purple eggplant. You can use loose soil that has been cleared of weeds and weeds.
In addition, you can choose a large pot or polybag so that seeding can be done in the same container. Make sure you have a hole in the bottom so that water doesn't stagnate.
After that, the pH of the soil should be in the range of 6.5-7. If the soil pH is acidic or <6.5, you should sprinkle dolomite/agricultural lime.
Preparing the Seeds
The next way to plant purple eggplant is to prepare good seeds. Eggplant seeds sold are usually in the form of seeds or seeds. Several ways to determine that purple eggplant seeds are of good quality are by paying attention to the condition of the seeds being clean and shiny, the moisture content in the seeds is sufficient, the size, color, and shape are uniform, and the seeds are not dirty and mixed with poor quality seeds.
If the above seed characteristics have been met, then you can proceed to the next step, which is sowing purple eggplant seeds. Good seeds for eggplant cultivation are those that have a growth rate above 75%.
Seeding
As a way to plant purple eggplant, you have to do the seeding first, before planting in open land or in polybags and pots. The trick is to soak the purple eggplant seeds in warm water for about 15 minutes.
After that, you can mix the soil and rice husk in a 1:1 ratio into a polybag or pot. Make thin holes with a distance of at least 1 cm. Then, place the purple eggplant seeds in the holes that have been made. Cover the seeds with the remaining mixture of soil and rice husks in sufficient quantity.
Then, compact the soil by gently tapping and gently watering or sprinkling the seedlings with sufficient water. Do it regularly in the morning and evening. After that, you need to put it in a place that is exposed to the sun. Wait for the seeds to germinate for about 1 month.
Planting
The next way to plant purple eggplant is to move it to a larger planting medium. You can do this after the seeds that have been sown have shown 4 leaves. For that, you have to prepare several polybags or pots that have been given a hole at the bottom. Adjust to the number of seeds you have.
Next, mix the soil media with manure and husk and put it in a polybag or pot of planting media. Make a hole in the center about 5 cm deep.
Then, remove the purple eggplant seeds that have germinated slowly from the seedling medium. Plant the seeds in the holes that have been made. Compact the soil, then flush with sufficient water regularly, ie in the morning and evening.
Maintenance
After doing how to plant the purple eggplant, you can continue with proper maintenance. Proper maintenance will be an important key in producing quality purple eggplant.
Water the purple eggplant regularly twice a day every morning and evening. In addition, do follow-up fertilization with organic fertilizer. You also need to check if there are leaves that are diseased, if there are any, just pick and throw them away.
In addition, you also have to remove weeds around the plant periodically. You can also attach and tie bamboo to the plant as a support for the purple eggplant plant.
Harvest
If all the processes in how to plant purple eggplant have been carried out, it's time for the harvest process. If you do all the ways to grow purple eggplant correctly, then you will feel the harvest just in time. This of course is also influenced by weather factors and conditions around the planting media. Usually, you harvest in the third or fourth month.
This purple eggplant plant can produce fruit actively until around the age of five to six months. You should harvest purple eggplant in the morning or evening. Pick the purple eggplant by the stem by hand or with scissors or a knife. You can harvest for about three days to once a week on the same plant.