What spacing between plants and rows is suitable for eggplant planting
The plant spacing for eggplant is generally 40-45 cm, with row spacing of 60-65 cm, planting about 2,500-2,700 plants per mu; or plant spacing of 35-40 cm, with row spacing of 65-70 cm, planting about 2,800-3,000 plants per mu. If at the seedling stage, divide the seedlings at the two true-leaf stage, with a plant and row spacing of 8×8 cm, or you can use 9×9 cm nutrition cups to ensure the seedlings have a certain nutritional area.
Key points of eggplant cultivation techniques
1. Soil: It must be sandy loam or loam with high and dry terrain, even soil fertility, deep soil layer, good ventilation and light transmission, fertile and loose soil texture, convenient drainage and irrigation, and stable and guaranteed yields. Plots where solanaceous and cucurbit vegetables, as well as crops such as potatoes and tobacco, have not been planted for 2-3 years should be selected, and plots where legumes, onions and garlic crops have been planted are best.
2. Land preparation: Deeply plow the selected plot and sun-bleach it, break the soil clods into fine pieces, apply 50-80 kg of lime powder per mu to disinfect the soil and adjust the pH, then apply sufficient base fertilizer (2,000 kg of decomposed farmyard manure per mu, 50 kg of compound fertilizer).
3. Planting: After the eggplant seedlings are planted, water thoroughly with the planting water, and stop watering after the seedlings survive to promote deep rooting of the root system. For early spring planting, the sowing period is in December, planting in late February of the following year, and harvesting begins at the end of April; for autumn turnaround planting, sow and raise seedlings in May, plant in June, and harvest in August-September.
4. Management: About 15 days after planting, carry out shallow intertillage and weeding, and apply 10-20 loads of thin human manure and urine per mu. After fruit set, remove the side branches below the root eggplant, and remove leaves, prune branches, and thin fruits. Also carry out deep intertillage and weeding, earth up, and apply a heavy topdressing once, with 50 kg of potassium sulfate compound fertilizer per mu. Every 2 harvests of fruit should be followed by one topdressing, with 15-20 kg of compound fertilizer per mu, and at the same time foliar fertilizers such as Jinjiapeng, Aiduoshou, or 0.3% potassium dihydrogen phosphate can be sprayed. In the early growth stage, the water requirement is not much, and appropriate drought is beneficial to flower bud differentiation and improves the fruit setting rate; after the root eggplant sets fruit steadily, the water required for plant growth gradually increases, so the soil should be kept moist, with appropriate drainage and irrigation.