Detailed Explanation of Key Techniques for Year-Round Eggplant Cultivation

Eggplant is an indeterminate-flowering plant. As long as nutrients, water, temperature, light and other conditions can meet its growth needs, it can be cultivated all year round and produce fresh fruit. The specific cultivation techniques are:

1. Sowing and seedling raising. Sowing is best done in November-December of the previous year. Large or medium-sized plastic tunnels can be used, but insulation conditions must be good. After emergence, thin the seedlings when they reach the 2-leaf stage to prevent leggy seedlings. Pay attention to disease control. After full emergence, spray with 500 times diluted Keshade solution, and 5 days later spray with 200-300 times diluted 40% phosethyl-Al or 600 times diluted 75% Miaojunqing solution.

2. Transplanting. Transplanting is best done around Qingming, with sufficient basal fertilizer applied and plastic film mulching. In the north, double-film mulching is used to prevent freeze damage.

3. Cutting branches and leaving stubble. Around late July, cut off all the main stems and branches of the eggplant, leaving a stubble height of about 15 cm.

4. Field management. After cutting the branches, carry out deep inter-row cultivation to loosen the soil and remove weeds to a depth of 10-15 cm, clear away debris and old plastic film, improve the root growth environment and promote new root growth. Apply 3000 kg of human manure and urine, 20 kg of superphosphate and 10 kg of urea per mu, applied deeply between the eggplant rows. In case of drought, regularly irrigate to combat it, maintaining sufficient fertilizer and water to meet the growth needs of sprouting new leaves and buds.

5. Pest and disease control. The newly growing tender leaves and buds, being in the high-temperature season of August, are susceptible to damage from aphids, ladybirds, red spider mites and corn borers, so timely pesticide control is needed. Decis at 1000-1500 times dilution, Sumicidin at 1500 times dilution or other high-efficiency, low-toxicity pesticides can be used for control to reduce pesticide pollution. If rainy weather occurs and diseases such as Phytophthora blight appear, spray with 400 times diluted Zhibingling solution or 3000 times diluted 40% phosethyl-Al solution.

6. Reasonable bud selection. Since after branch cutting, with sufficient fertilizer and water, more tender buds grow, density control should be reasonable, with 3-5 buds per plant being appropriate.

7. Film covering for insulation and harvesting. In northern regions, a tunnel should be set up for insulation 5 days before the first frost. Water appropriately and apply topdressing, with 7.5 kg of urea or 100 kg of human manure and urine per mu. Harvest the fruit once it reaches a certain size, in order to achieve good quality, high yield and a long duration. The harvest period can be extended to February of the following year.