Item description for 600 Black Beauty Eggplant Seeds Large Purple Aubergine Brinjal Vegetable

Black Beauty Eggplant is a popular heirloom variety of tender, purplish-black bell-shaped eggplants! This easy-to-grow variety has big yields, growing 30" tall bushes that hold their large, meaty 2-pound fruit off the ground! Beautiful in the garden and in the kitchen, these purple gems are delicious breaded or fried and as meat substitute sin vegetarian or vegan dishes. Also a great source of dietary fiber, iron, potassium, and protein.

Remove large weeds, large rocks, and litter from the planting area. Spade the soil 6-10 inches deep and turn each shovel of soil over completely to till soil. Eggplant prefers well-drained, fertile, sandy loam soils with a pH between 5.5 and 7.2. You may add fertilizer (see "Fertilizing" below) or organic material such as compost, leaves, or rotted hay over planting area at this point. The higher the organic matter content of the soil the better, so it may be beneficial to incorporate a 3-4 inch layer of compost if possible.

Although eggplant can be seeded directly into the garden, it may be better for beginner gardeners to use transplants. For transplants, start seeds 6-8 weeks indoors before transplanting outside. Seeds may germinate more quickly, in 5-7 days, if kept at 86 degrees and may take up to 14 days if germinated at 65 degrees F. Eggplant is a tropical plant so it is sensitive to cold and should not be planted outside until after all risk of frost has passed and daytime temperatures are at least 65 degrees F. The plants will grow to 2-4 feet upright bushes so space transplants 2 - 2 1/2 feet apart. To direct sow, make 1 inch deep holes spaced 2 - 2 1/2 feet apart in raised beds down rows 2-4 feet apart, then plant 6-8 seeds in each hole. Cover thinly with soil and water after planting.