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How do I know when my Japanese eggplant is ripe?
To know for sure your eggplant is ready, harvest one and cut it open. The skin should be tender and delicate, the flesh firm, and the seeds should be small, pale and tightly packed. In an overripe eggplant, the seeds will be darker, and the flesh around the mature seeds may be looser.
How long do Ichiban eggplants get?
Ichiban’ eggplant is typical of all eggplants in growing well in warm weather, but it produces large numbers of 10-inch-long, dark-purple fruits in 50 to 60 days, unlike standard varieties that can take 70 days or longer.
How big should a Japanese eggplant be before picking?
How to Harvest Japanese Eggplants. Prepare to harvest Japanese eggplants around 70 to 80 days after transplanting, or when they’re about the size of a finger (for the Little Finger variety) or a hot dog (for the Ichiban variety), and the skin is glossy and wrinkle-free.
Does eggplant ripen off the vine?
Eggplant is a warm-season vegetable plant that produces an oblong-shaped fruit. While it is not easy to ripen the eggplant fruit off the vine, the best-tasting ones are those picked at an immature size. The only time you want to allow the fruit to ripen on the vine is for seed production for future planting.
What kind of eggplant is long and skinny?
Japanese eggplant are long and thin, with a dark, almost black color and glossy appearance. They get very soft and creamy when cooked, and have an almost melt-in-your-mouth texture.
When is the best time to pick an eggplant?
Skin should be glossy and thin. Eggplant harvest may begin when the fruits are developed and small, but growing fruits to full size before harvesting eggplants results in more fruit for usage. Harvesting eggplants should occur when the inner flesh is cream colored, fruits are firm and before seeds are visible.
How often should you harvest a Japanese eggplant?
Leave about 1/4- to 1/2-inch of the stem connected to the eggplant. Eggplants have a tough stem, so trying to pull the fruit off can damage the plant. Harvest Japanese eggplants once or twice weekly once they begin to approach maturity. Frequent harvest can encourage more fruit production and prevent the eggplants from become bitter on the plant.
How to tell when a Japanese eggplant is ripe?
Picking the eggplants at the right time provides for best flavor and texture. Monitor the developing eggplants as they begin to elongate. Select ripe fruits that develop the full skin color of the variety, usually a glossy purple, and measure 6 to 8 inches long. Support the eggplant with one hand and cut through the stem with a knife.
What happens if you pick an eggplant too long?
Leaving the eggplant harvest too long causes bitter eggplant with a tough skin and large seeds. Learning how to harvest an eggplant correctly comes with practice, but it shouldn’t take long before you’re picking an eggplant like a pro.