Garden Egg is a multipurpose fruit. You can eat it raw or cooked with vegetables, stews and so on. It is very nutritious; it contains potassium, magnesium and vitamin B1. Garden Egg is very common and highly consumed in Nigeria. You can start growing garden egg at home and at the same time, make money from it. The money part? It’s important to us, too.
As a beginner, you need to understand the basic steps required on how to grow a garden egg. This is how you can be better; even if you have the capacity for a large production, just start small, then you scale up gradually— this will minimize your mistakes.
Garden Egg which is also known as eggplant come in varieties; it could be green or white. The nurturing of eggplant is quite similar to tomatoes and pepper. The following steps will equip you on how to grow it.
1. Prepare a space
Get a small space within your compound. Clear every dirt around that surroundings. Make sure you have sandy-loamy soil — it is good for garden egg. For a better result, you can mix organic manure with the soil. Remember, you also need to be particular about sunlight; just like other fruits, garden eggs need it for growth.
2. Plant the seeds
This is where you decide which species you want to plant. Select a suitable species — it is advisable you just go for the common type you see around or otherwise — this is after you’ve investigated. Plant about two garden egg seeds per hole— this should be done in the morning. You can also grow your eggplant in pots, buckets and later transplant it after it must have grown about two or three seed leaves. There should be proper spacing between your holes.
3. Apply Fertilizer
Apply quality fertilizers to help you with the growth of your eggplant. Fertilizers that contain nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium should be embraced. The crop would perform better in terms of the number of fruit per plant and its length.
4. Always clear weeds
Weeding is imperative for the growth of your plant. As soon as you spot an unwanted plant, just uproot it. If you don’t cultivate this style, it will affect the proper development of your garden egg because weeds compete for nutrients.
5. Control Diseases
Garden Eggs are often affected by different diseases which usually make them rot. Spray insecticides to curb any chance of fungal infection and insects such as bugs, caterpillars and spider mites.
6. Harvest
You’ll start to see the result of your garden egg between six to eight weeks; it starts to get flowers and then, after two to three months, you can harvest it. Don’t forcefully remove the eggplant; it can damage the stem.
If you enjoyed reading this article, you should also read How to grow Onions at home in 5 simple steps, How to grow Tomatoes at home in 6 simple steps and How to grow sweet potatoes at home in 5 simple steps
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