Resistant to diseases and rot - Alekseevsky eggplant: characteristics and description of the variety

Eggplant is a heat-loving crop that migrated to Russia from India. To grow these plants, high temperatures are needed, so they are planted in open ground in the southern regions.

Eggplants can also be planted in greenhouses in central Russia. One of the common varieties shown in the photo is Alekseevsky. You can get a good harvest from the bushes even in temperate climates.

Description of the plant

The Alekseevsky variety belongs to the early eggplants, reaching ripeness 98-132 days after emergence. Gives a bountiful harvest. Eggplant forms a slightly spreading bush of small height - up to 70 cm.

The stem has slight pubescence. The leaves, as can be seen in the photo, are medium in size, with uneven edges.

The variety is zoned primarily for the North Caucasus and the Lower Volga region. However, this eggplant can be planted in a greenhouse or in a film tunnel in central Russia. The variety is also grown in Moldova and Ukraine.

Characteristics and detailed description of the Alekseevsky variety

Alekseevsky species fully corresponds to the description stated on the packaging of planting material. It is popular due to its high yield, ease of care and tasty small-sized fruits, which makes it possible to use it for various culinary delights and eat it.

Botanical characteristics

The crop forms a medium-sized bush, slightly spreading, and produces stable yields of rich purple vegetables. The variety is early and allows you to grow eggplants in beds in the southern regions of the country, as well as in greenhouses, regardless of weather conditions and climatic zone. More detailed features of the plant are presented in the table:

Fruit characteristics

The Alekseevsky variety produces cylindrical fruits. Their weight reaches from 100 to 190 grams, the average length is up to 15 centimeters. The skin of the eggplant is smooth, glossy, and dark purple in color. The pulp of the fruit is white and has no bitter taste.

The variety has the following advantages:

• high productivity;
• rich skin color;
• correct and uniform shape of the fruit;
• taste qualities.

Eggplant has high taste and is versatile in use. The fruits can be used to prepare sauté and other dishes, as well as for preservation. Transports well.

Important! The Alekseevsky variety produces about 7 kg of yield per square meter of planting.

On the calyx of the eggplant, the thorns are either absent or present in small quantities.

Eggplant varieties for greenhouses

High-yielding varieties grow well in greenhouses; they require care, but respond to it with friendly and good fruiting. Stable temperature and humidity allow you to choose tall plants - from each such bush you can remove from 5 to 12 kg of vegetables.

A mid-season hybrid, it requires the formation of a bush, but has a short height of up to 60 cm. The plant has thorns. Pear-shaped, rounded fruits with low bitterness, ripening in 90 days. Medium shelf life, for all types of canning and cooking.

Description of the variety Robin Hood

Tall, up to 240 – 260 cm, matures up to 120 days from the time of planting. The fruits are from 20 to 35 cm in size, the yield is up to 9 kg. Requires the formation of a bush; it is enough to leave 2 stems, on which up to 15 fruits ripen at the same time. Excellent taste for both fresh consumption and pickling.

Late-ripening variety, distinguished by large fruits. Ripe fruits reach 30 cm and weigh up to 900g. The bush is up to 150 cm high, forms itself, but requires pinching. You can remove up to 17 kg from one plant. very dense purple fruits. It is perfectly stored and transported, the shelf life is the highest among all varieties with such productivity - up to 3 months.

Eggplant Sophia

Seed preparation process

Before growing seedlings at home or in a greenhouse, you need to prepare the seeds well. As you know, germination of eggplant seeds is difficult. To get a good result, the following steps will be required.

1. Checking the quality of seeds. To ensure that the planted seeds will sprout, they are first soaked in warm water. After waiting 5 minutes, the floating seeds are separated. Those that have risen are suitable for landing.
2. Soaking before sowing. To facilitate seed germination, they should be placed in aloe juice for a day.

In order for seedlings to grow strong, careful soil preparation is equally important. Eggplant is a crop that is demanding on soil composition. It is preferable to use turf soil for sowing seeds. It is enriched with peat, humus, wood ash, sawdust and superphosphate are added.

As for containers, use special cassettes, plastic cups or large containers. The seeds are lowered into the soil to a depth of 1.5 cm. Then the containers with seedlings are covered with film until shoots emerge. They are left at a temperature of 25 degrees.

Preparatory work before planting eggplant Alekseevsky

In order for as many seeds as possible to sprout, it is necessary to carry out a number of preparatory measures.

• Weed out low-quality seed material.

To do this, soak the eggplant seeds in heated water and wait a few minutes. After this, collect those that are on the surface of the water; they are the ones that need to be used in the future.

• Soak.

If you soak eggplant seeds before sowing, you can significantly increase their germination rate.

Fertile soil is a necessary condition for growing high-quality seedlings. Turf soil is an excellent choice. The soil can be additionally filled with peat, organic and superphosphate fertilizer.

You can use individual containers or common containers. It is necessary to place the eggplant seeds in a depression of about two centimeters. After this, the containers are covered with film. Before the seeds germinate, they are kept in a warm place.

Features of growing eggplants

Eggplant is first sown as seedlings. For seedlings to appear, a temperature of about 25 degrees is needed. In such conditions, sprouts can be seen within two to three weeks.

Important! The germination of eggplant seeds is not lost for five years.

Seedlings can be placed directly in the greenhouse. Before planting seeds, perform the following operations:

• pickle the soil with a solution of potassium permanganate, it is better to do this twice;
• seeds are sown at intervals of 3 cm;
• until seedlings appear, maintain a temperature of 25 degrees;
• when the seeds have hatched, the temperature is lowered to 18 degrees to avoid stretching the sprouts;
• If some seedlings still stretch out, add soil.

If the seeds are purchased with a reserve, you can sow them with a gap of 1 cm, and leave 4 cm between the rows. After the emergence of seedlings, their condition is assessed. The weak ones are cut off, and the strongest ones are left at a distance of 3 cm from each other.

Important! During the growth of seedlings, you need to regularly loosen the soil.

It is not necessary to use fertilizing when growing eggplant seedlings. For the seeds to germinate, the soil temperature must reach at least 14 degrees. Otherwise they will not germinate.

Proven best varieties for open ground

Another very important recommendation from breeders and specialists in the field of plant growing is to offer a selection of varieties that have already been tested and adapted to a specific region. Below we present the universal, early-ripening best varieties of eggplant for open ground, tested in several regions of the country with different climates:

• Alekseevsky eggplant;
• Vakula;
• Banana;
• Negus;
• Valentina;
• King in the North;
• Dragon;
• Black Prince;
• Nutcracker.

The common characteristics of all the listed varieties are the following:

• Early and friendly maturation;
• Keeping quality;
• Resistance to diseases and drought;
• They ripen well even in cloudy summers.

The most popular eggplant varieties are Alekseevsky, King of the North, Black Prince and Vakula.

Features of "Alekseevsky" eggplant

This semi-hybrid was bred by Soviet breeders. Initially, it was actively grown in the south of the country. Later, a species was developed for cold regions with short summers. A truly “northern” variety, perfect for the Urals and Siberia. It is distinguished by fast and friendly fruit ripening. Fruits with dense pulp, dark blue-violet color, cylindrical shape, ripen together. The harvest can be harvested as early as August. The taste of eggplants is without bitterness and differs in their shelf life.

Vakula - garden hero

This type of eggplant is distinguished by the height of the bush - it grows up to 1.5. The variety is large-fruited, early. Requires garters to supports. Gardeners are attracted by the yield and uniformity of fruit ripening. Eggplants are dark purple in color. The pulp is yellowish, not bitter. Keeps well fresh. Suitable for canning, freezing, salads and frying.

Delicate "Negus"

Early ripening variety with small fruits. Rapid ripening allows harvesting during the summer. So, having collected ripe eggplants, after 10 days you can harvest the fruits again. A distinctive feature of the variety is the shelf life of fresh eggplants. The fruits themselves are small, with white flesh, without bitterness.

An early ripening variety that produces many side shoots, thereby increasing the number of ovaries. The variety is early ripening, with an elongated fruit shape, ripening smoothly. Among the disadvantages, poor resistance to surface frost is noted. Seedlings can be planted no earlier than mid-June.

Valentina – the queen of the “blue ones”

The variety has been known for a long time. One of the features is the resistance of the peel to cracking. The fruits are elongated, dark purple in color. Fruits until frost. The pulp is tender, creamy, tender, without a bitter aftertaste.

Joker in the garden

This hybrid is carpal and pleases its owners with high productivity. Several greens are formed on one brush. The fruits are small, rounded and elongated. The eggplant color is purple with small white and yellow veins. The taste is tender, not bitter.

Northern king in the garden

An excellent variety for the Siberian and Ural regions. The bushes are small, flowering and fruiting are consistent. The variety is productive. The fruits are elongated, purple in color, with soft creamy pulp, without bitterness, not spicy. Suitable for long-term fresh storage and can withstand transportation.

The Unpretentious Black Prince

This variety is very popular in the Urals and central Russia. The main advantage is productivity even with minimal crop care. The bushes are medium-sized, the fruits are dark, almost black with a purple tint, drop-shaped in color. They ripen early and very friendly. The pulp is white, juicy, without bitter aftertaste.

Super early variety. After planting in the ground, within a month you can harvest. The fruits are small and purple. The pulp is juicy, without a bitter aftertaste.

Planting seedlings in the ground

The optimal age of eggplant seedlings for transplanting into the ground is 60 days. It is recommended to harden the sprouts first. To do this, the sprouts are kept for 2 hours at a temperature of 15 degrees. Within a few days, the temperature is reduced to street readings. The exposure time is extended to 24 hours.

For an eggplant bed, it is better to choose an area with fertile soil in a well-lit area. It is also important that the place is protected from the wind. In this case, it is preferable that the site is located on a hill.

It is necessary to take into account what crop was previously grown in this area, and what neighbors the eggplant will have.

1. The best predecessors are onions, carrots, cabbage and legumes. You should not plant eggplant after nightshade crops. These include peppers, tomatoes, potatoes and the eggplant itself (even a different variety). Before planting, the gap must be maintained for at least three years.
2. It is important to pay attention to what crops are located in the neighborhood. Eggplant does not tolerate shade. Therefore, there should be no crops with tall bushes nearby. The best neighbors for eggplant are garlic, onions, and sorrel.

Important! Eggplant seedlings are planted in the ground towards the end of May.

For each sprout in the garden bed, you need to leave a space of 60x40 cm. When the temperature drops, the first flowers on the bushes may fall off. There is no need to be afraid of this; this fact does not indicate poor quality of seeds or an incorrectly chosen variety.

The best varieties of eggplants for open ground

Each gardener chooses the best that the market has to offer for planting on his plot. This automatically means that everything grown will be of good quality, a good harvest at a minimum cost. Naturally, you need to choose a variety suitable for your region and provide the plantings with proper care. All this can be attributed to the choice of eggplant variety for open ground. Let's talk about this in more detail.

Relatively recently, this southern vegetable was considered a delicacy, but today it can be found everywhere. After all, its taste is incomparable.

All that remains is to choose the best varieties of eggplant to plant in your garden, but this is not easy to do, as only very experienced gardeners know. Beginners gain experience through trial and error, purchasing several varieties for planting at once.

How to care for eggplants in the garden

Immediately before planting, prepare a hole in the soil, which is spilled with two liters of water. Plants can be planted if the soil has warmed up well and the threat of frost has definitely passed.

To grow your own eggplant, you need to care for the seedlings even after planting them in open ground. This includes:

• regular watering;
• weed removal;
• protection from pests.

You need to water the eggplant once every 10 days. To calculate the volume of water for irrigation, you need to remember: the soil must be moistened to a depth of 50 cm.

The Colorado potato beetle poses a great danger to crops such as eggplant. Among the remedies often used by gardeners are tinctures of garlic and pepper; it is worth noting that their effect is only insignificant. The use of chemicals will also not be to everyone's liking.

A good option for protecting bushes is agrofibre. The eggplant is covered with this soft material. As the bushes grow, the covering rises without causing any harm to the leaves.

Another important point is that plants need feeding. This procedure is carried out in three steps:

1. During the flowering period.
2. Before the main harvest.
3. After removing the vegetables.

To ensure large fruits, only the 4 strongest branches are left on the main stem. The rest are cut off so that moisture and nutrients are not taken in vain.

Growing and care

Eggplants are planted in a permanent place after the temperature has stabilized, when autumn frosts have completely passed. The interval between the bushes is left at least 60 cm. Watering begins a week after planting. Moisturize 1 to 3 times a week, taking into account precipitation. The soil should be saturated to at least 30-40 cm.

Organic and mineral compounds are used for fertilizer. Deadlines for procedures:

• in the flowering phase;
• into active fruiting;
• after regular fruit harvesting.

The surface of the beds is treated according to the general rules - loosened shallowly, weeds pulled up.

Eggplant Behemoth F1

The hybrid Hippopotamus is called a large animal for a reason. This plant can reach a height of 2 m, so it is suitable for growing only in high greenhouses.

The black-purple fruits grow up to 20 cm in length and are shaped like a pear. Their flesh is white with a greenish tint. This hybrid is highly valued for its excellent presentation and taste of the fruit, as well as good yield (it is 2-3 times higher than that of many eggplant varieties).

Eggplant Clorinda F1

A productive and unpretentious Dutch hybrid.

The bush is erect, powerful, of medium height (up to 1 m), with a thick, highly pubescent stem and small, rough green leaves. The fruits are oval-shaped, dark purple (almost black) in color, highly glossy, up to 25 cm long, with dense but thin skin. The pulp is whitish, dense, excellent taste without bitterness, with a subtle mushroom tint.

The hybrid copes well with stressful situations, sets fruit even in cool weather, and is resistant to major diseases (especially the tobacco mosaic virus). The fruits are well transported.

Eggplant Bourgeois F1

High-yielding large-fruited hybrid with a long fruiting period.

The bush is powerful, strong, semi-spreading, medium in size (up to 80 cm in height), with green leaves and slightly pubescent purple stems. The fruits are flat-round, black-violet, glossy, with dense but thin skin. The pulp is white, tender, excellent taste without bitterness, with a subtle mushroom tint.

The hybrid is resistant to major diseases. The fruits are well transported.

Eggplant Valentina F1

This medium-sized plant is notable for its pubescent stem, green leaves with grooves along the edges and black-purple fruits in the shape of an elongated pear about 25 cm long. The eggplant flesh is creamy-white and absolutely not bitter. The special value of this hybrid lies in the fact that the bushes bear flowers well and do not fall off even in unfavorable conditions.

It is recommended not to pick eggplant seedlings: this will allow you to harvest as early as possible.

Eggplant Lilac Fog

The stem of the plant reaches a height of 60 cm and is distinguished by strong pubescence. The rich green leaves are very smooth, without jagged edges. The fruits are oval in shape, the color of the skin is usually lilac-lilac, and the flesh inside is white, without bitterness.

This variety has become popular among gardeners due to its good resistance to blossom end rot and attractive fruit color.

Eggplants of the Lilac Fog variety are recommended for cultivation in all regions of Russia.

Eggplant Bibo F1

Dutch hybrid with unusual white fruits.

The bush is semi-spreading, powerful, but compact, of medium size (up to 80-90 cm in height), with a slightly pubescent stem and small green leaves. The fruits are oval-conical, up to 20 cm long, slightly glossy, with dense but thin skin. The pulp is soft, white, tender, without bitterness.

The hybrid is unpretentious in cultivation, resistant to fusarium and tobacco mosaic virus. The fruits are well transported.

Eggplant Maxik F1

The plant reaches a height of 100 cm. Its long (about 25 cm) fruits are shiny purple in shape and resemble a cylinder. Their flesh is greenish-white, without bitterness.

Maxik F1 eggplants tolerate changes in air temperature well and are resistant to tobacco and cucumber mosaic viruses.