Eggplant not fruiting? 6 things worth checking

Eggplant that flowers and never fruits

A plant that looks healthy, flowers well and then drops every single flower is the eggplant complaint I hear most often in the shop, and it is a frustrating one because there is nothing obviously wrong to look at. The plant is fine. Something in its conditions is telling it that this is not the week to carry fruit, and there are only a handful of things that send that message. Work through them in this order and you will usually find it.

1. Heat, and the number that matters

Eggplant is a warm-climate plant and it still has a ceiling. Once the days get up past about 35 degrees, and especially when the nights stay warm as well, the pollen stops working properly and the flowers abort. Nothing you do at that point fixes the week you are in, so the answer is shade cloth over the hottest stretch of the afternoon and a deep soak the evening before a hot run, and then the plant picks up again when the weather backs off.

The same thing happens at the other end. Cold nights below about 15 degrees will drop flowers just as effectively, which is why a plant that goes out too early flowers early and sets nothing.

2. Wind

This one gets missed constantly because nobody stands in the garden at the time the wind is doing it. Eggplant flowers are not held on strongly and a gusty position will knock them off before they have a chance to set, so if your plants are on a corner or in a wind tunnel between the shed and the fence, that alone can explain an empty plant. A few pots, a low hedge or a bit of shade cloth on the windy side is a cheap fix and it lasts.

3. Pollination

Eggplant flowers are self-fertile, so they do not need another plant, and they do need movement to shake the pollen loose. In a still, sheltered spot or a glasshouse there may simply not be enough of it. Give the plant a gentle shake in the middle of the day when the flowers are open and the pollen is dry, and if you want to be thorough, a soft brush dabbed from flower to flower does the same job in about a minute.

4. Watering that comes and goes

Steady is the word. A plant that dries right out and then gets flooded will shed flowers and fruit as a stress response, and it will do it every time the pattern repeats. Deep soaks two or three times a week beat a light daily splash, and a decent layer of mulch is what keeps the moisture even between waterings rather than letting the top of the bed swing from bone dry to soaked.

5. Too much nitrogen

A big green leafy plant with no fruit on it is usually a plant that has been fed too well with the wrong thing. Nitrogen builds foliage, and once flowering starts the plant wants potassium instead. Swap to a potassium feed at first flower, hold off the high-nitrogen stuff for the rest of the season, and the plant redirects itself within a few weeks.

6. Airflow and crowding

Eggplant packed in too tightly gets humid in the middle, which brings on fungal problems and gives pests somewhere to hide. Take a few of the lower leaves off to open the base up, and give each plant enough room that you can get your hand in without pushing branches aside. Selective pruning also stops the plant spending its energy on leaves it does not need.

What about companion planting

Marigolds and basil get planted alongside eggplant a lot and they are good company for it. I would not lean on them to solve a pest problem on their own, and I would not skip the weekly look under the leaves because they are there. Treat them as part of a healthy bed rather than a control measure and you will not be disappointed.

When to stop troubleshooting

If the plant is healthy and the conditions are right, patience is the last thing on the list. Eggplant takes its time to get going and the first flowers often drop even on a good plant, so a plant that sets nothing in its first fortnight of flowering is not necessarily a plant with a problem. Fix what you can control, then leave it alone and let it get on with it.

Shop related products

• Brunnings Potash Power 2.5kg. The potassium feed to switch to at first flower.
• Seasol Seaweed Concentrate 1L. A tonic through a hot or stressful run.
• Martins Organic Sugar Cane Bale 11kg. Mulch to keep the soil moisture even between waterings.
• Manutec Tomato Tablets 20g. A slow feed for fruiting plants in pots.
• Multicrop EcoPest Oil Insect Spray. For aphids and whitefly under the leaves.

Did you know we also keep garden stakes and garden twine in the shop, along with a shade cloth range that is not all listed online. Give us a ring on (08) 8536 4333 to check what is on the shelf.

The rest of the range is in our garden centre, and the Neutrog and Brunnings feeds live in Neutrog and Brunnings.

Keep reading

• How to grow eggplant (aubergine) in a home veggie patch
• Simple ways to attract pollinators to your vegetable garden
• The ultimate guide to growing heirloom tomatoes at home

I am the sort of gardener who shakes the plant and then stands back looking like she knows what she is doing.

Candeece
Strathalbyn H Hardware