What are the environmental requirements for growing eggplant?
Eggplant is an upright, branching herbaceous plant of the nightshade family. The plant is relatively tall, around 0.8-1 m. Eggplant is rich in nutrients, such as protein, vitamins and various trace elements. Eating eggplant has effects such as lowering high blood lipids and anti-aging, and it is widely grown in China. So what environmental requirements are there for growing eggplant? Below, the editor brings you the environmental requirements for eggplant. Let's take a look!
1. Soil
Eggplant is suited to growing in soil that is fertile, loose and thick, with normal drainage and irrigation and strong water and fertilizer retention. In addition, the growth of eggplant requires a relatively large amount of nitrogen fertilizer. If nitrogen is lacking, flower bud differentiation of eggplant is hindered and the number of flowers is insufficient. Especially when eggplant reaches the flowering stage, if there is too little nitrogen, plant growth slows down and short-styled flowers increase, resulting in a serious shortage of yield. Therefore, when choosing soil, we should also pay attention to the nitrogen content in the soil. If the content is too low, nitrogen should be supplemented in time or the proportion of nitrogen in the base fertilizer should be increased.
2. Temperature
Eggplant is a typical summer crop. It is not suitable for growing in low-temperature environments and has high temperature requirements. Although eggplant has strong heat tolerance, if it is kept in a high-temperature and high-humidity environment for a long time, rotten fruit and fruit drop are likely to occur. So we should adjust the temperature properly according to the growth stage and humidity of eggplant. After sowing, the temperature should be controlled at around 30 degrees to promote seed germination and emergence, and the temperature must not exceed the range of 11-40 degrees. Also, when sowing, try not to keep the temperature in a constant-temperature environment, as this is not conducive to seed germination and growth. Appropriately alternating between 30 degrees and 20 degrees promotes seed germination and ensures uniform and strong seedlings.
3. Light
Eggplant has a relatively high demand for light. During the growth and development of eggplant, ensuring sufficient light is beneficial to photosynthesis, increases the accumulation of dry matter in the plant, promotes plant growth, and enhances the quality of eggplant fruit. Conversely, photosynthesis declines, assimilation is insufficient, plant growth becomes poor, and color development is hindered, which not only reduces yield but also lowers the commercial value of eggplant. In addition, changes in light affect flower bud differentiation in eggplant. When light is insufficient, flower bud differentiation is clearly inadequate and long-styled flowers decrease. Therefore, during the growth period of eggplant, especially at the flower bud differentiation and seedling stages, sufficient light must be ensured.
4. Water
The eggplant plant is relatively dense, with many branches and leaves, high yield, and a large water requirement. Throughout the entire growth period of eggplant, the soil moisture content should be kept at at least around 70%, and the humidity should also be maintained at 75%. However, each different growth stage of eggplant has different water requirements. For example, at the seedling stage, the soil should be kept in a moist state at all times while other environmental conditions are suitable. Sufficient water can ensure normal growth of seedlings, promote flower bud differentiation, and improve flower quality. Therefore, during cultivation, the water requirement of eggplant must be met to avoid affecting eggplant growth.
It should be noted that overly closed soil will seriously hinder the growth of eggplant, so we must prevent the soil from being too wet. If it is too wet, root rot and decay are likely to occur. Watering should not be excessive. On rainy days, pay attention to drainage. The watering method should mainly be furrow irrigation to ensure a certain amount of oxygen in the soil. That is all for today's introduction. This article is for reference only. Thank you all for reading and supporting!