A universal variety for all regions of the country - Drakosha eggplant: characteristics and description

The Drakosha eggplant variety is suitable for cultivation in all regions of the Russian Federation. The crop grows in greenhouses and open ground and produces tasty and fairly large fruits.

History of variety selection

Drakosha is a full-fledged variety, bred specifically for cold climates. The originator of the variety is a well-known agricultural company in Russia, the author of many modern varieties and hybrids of garden plants. The goal of the selection was to create a variety with universal fruits (using both fresh and canned fruits), capable of growing in open ground from mid-May and not requiring additional formation.

The variety was bred in 2006 on the basis of the early-ripening and cold-resistant Black Dragon variety, which is an East Asian subspecies of serpentine eggplants from China. Thanks to successful crossing with local eggplants, it was possible to obtain fruits of a classic shape and sufficient weight. The following is a description of the Drakosha eggplant, its photos and reviews from gardeners.

Description of eggplant Drakosha

The plant is a bush with a height of about 80-110 cm. The shape of the stem and leaves is characteristic of most Solanaceae. The strong, dark green stem grows almost vertically upward. Alternate leaves located on thick and long petioles form a relatively sparse crown, unable to hide large fruits from external view.

The pubescence of the leaves is quite rigid, making them appear rough and even prickly. The color of the leaves is light green, however, by the end of summer a barely noticeable purple tint appears on them.

Eggplant Drakosha is a monoecious plant with bisexual flowers. The flowers themselves are quite large - up to 5 cm in diameter, purple or white-violet. They are rarely located alone. Most often there are 5-6 flowers in an umbellate inflorescence.

Typically, flowering of the Drakosha variety occurs in early May - early June, although the timing may vary slightly depending on the time of planting. The Drakosha variety is an early ripening variety. The fruits ripen approximately 1.5 months after flowering (from 100 to 120 days from planting, depending on the climate). Peak yield occurs at the beginning of July.

Important! Eggplants are never eaten when fully ripe, as this causes them to lose their flavor and become extremely fibrous. Technical ripeness of eggplants occurs approximately 2-3 months before full ripeness.

Eggplant Drakosha can be grown both in a greenhouse and in open ground. In the case of greenhouse cultivation, seedlings can be planted in greenhouse soil in late April-early May. Directly into open ground - no earlier than the first ten days of June.

Description of fruits

The Drakosha eggplant fruits are common eggplant fruits that have some characteristic varietal characteristics. In particular, the shape of the berries of the Drakosha variety is not elongated, but pear-shaped.

The color of Drakosha fruits is deep purple. The skin has a pronounced gloss. There is no waxy coating on the fruits. Fruit sizes:

• length 16-21 cm;
• average diameter: 8-9 cm;
• thickening diameter – up to 16 cm.

The average weight of the fruit is 200-300 g, however, there are also giants up to 600 g. Moreover, they are not overripe, but have normal gastronomic qualities.

The pulp of the Drakosha variety has a whitish tint, it is sweetish, without any fiber. There is no bitterness even at late ripeness dates.

Growing

The last weeks of February and the beginning of March are a great time to sow seeds. When one or two leaves appear on the stems, you can begin picking. Seedlings can be planted in a greenhouse as early as mid-May, and in open soil no earlier than early June. In June, you will need to remove underdeveloped ovaries and flowers from the plants, and leave only 5–6 of the largest and strongest.

Important! Eggplants are difficult to transplant. You can immediately plant the seeds in disposable cups or boxes with separate containers, so that you can easily replant the sprout along with a small amount of soil.

Growing Tips:

• You need to choose only high-quality seeds. You should not save on this, so as not to pay twice later if your eggplants do not grow;
• You should take a responsible approach to choosing a site for growing eggplants. They do not tolerate proximity to other representatives of nightshade crops;
• To prevent seedlings from becoming lethargic, use containers of the correct shape and size. The plant may simply not survive in a cramped or, conversely, too large container;
• Before sowing, do not forget to treat the seeds. This will protect the plant itself and everything that grows around it from infections;
• plant seedlings on time. Eggplants need time to take root in the new soil and begin to develop, so do not delay replanting. For accuracy, please refer to the information on the packaging.

Characteristics of the variety

The Drakosha eggplant variety has excellent characteristics, however, they can be fully realized only by using the correct agricultural technology. In particular, it is believed that without the use of greenhouse shelters, obtaining maximum volumes of eggplant harvest is quite problematic.

Productivity and fruiting

Fruiting of the Drakosha variety begins in July and lasts about a month. During this period, zucchini is removed in a state of technical ripeness, suitable for consumption.

On average, up to 7-8 large fruits are grown on one bush of the Drakosha variety per season, which corresponds to a yield per bush of about 1-1.5 kg. At the same time, the planting density is such that the plant yield is up to 6 kg per 1 sq. m.

An increase in yield can be achieved by extending the flower setting period and creating the necessary conditions for the formation of large fruits. For this purpose, it is recommended to plant the Drakosha eggplant not in open ground in June, but in a temporary greenhouse in May, which must be removed after 1-1.5 months.

Area of ​​application of fruits

The main goal of the breeding was to obtain a universal high-yielding variety, and the creators succeeded. Due to the complete absence of bitterness in the fruits of the Drakosha variety, they can be used in any type of eggplant dishes without any pre-treatment.

They are fried, stewed, baked, pickled and made into various types of snacks - from caviar to sauces. In addition, the fruits of the Drakosha variety can be used in any type of canned food. This can be either regular fermentation and salting, or preservation using marinade.

The fruit pulp generally tolerates freezing well.

Resistance to diseases and pests

Eggplants of the Drakosha variety have high resistance to fungal infections, in particular late blight and gray rot. There have been no recorded cases of mosaic virus disease in this variety.

Among the pests, leafhoppers can appear, which are a source of phytoplasma bacteria that cause the appearance of stolbur. This causes the leaves to harden and wrinkle.

Isolated cases of blackleg may occur, but this is primarily due to excessive watering. As a rule, when the amount of moisture is normalized, the spread of the disease stops.

Advantages and disadvantages of the variety

Advantages:

• excellent taste;
• versatility in application;
• high productivity;
• resistance to most diseases;
• resistance to sudden cold snaps and other vagaries of weather;
• long fruiting.

Flaws:

• To obtain high yields, greenhouse cultivation is necessary, even in warm climates.

What can you feed and in what quantities?

Foliar feeding of tomatoes is carried out with various fertilizers, infusions and mixtures of preparations. However, the most significant and proven substances that are used for foliar nutrition are boric acid, calcium nitrate, potassium monophosphate and urea.

Boric acid

Boric acid has the ability to stimulate the flowering process of tomatoes, prevent the ovaries from shedding and contribute to their saturation with sugars. In other words, this fertilizer is necessary to produce a large number of fruits. Therefore, fertilizing tomatoes with boric acid is carried out at the flowering stage. This needs to be done at least once, but experienced summer residents recommend foliar treatment twice more: at the stage of fruit set and in the phase of their active growth.

In addition, boric acid helps fight putrefactive processes on plants that are cultivated in poorly ventilated greenhouses, for example, late blight.

Sometimes tomatoes suffer from a lack of boron, which is expressed by the following symptoms:

• the leaves lose their rich color and become pale green in the lower part of the bush;
• at the tops of the shoots the leaves curl and their veins become dark;
• plants become fragile;
• Brown spots with dead tissue appear on the fruits.

For different purposes, solutions of different concentrations are used. To stimulate fruiting and in case of boron deficiency, take 1 g of boric acid powder and mix it in 1 liter of hot water. To combat late blight, 1 teaspoon of boric acid is dissolved in 10 liters of hot water. In both cases, a cooled solution is used to apply the drug by foliar application. 1 liter of diluted boric acid is enough to treat 10 tomato bushes.

Features of planting and care

Seedling

In our climate (even in the southern regions) eggplant of the Drakosha variety is grown exclusively by seedlings. The main differences in growing this variety are the timing of planting seedlings.

Since the Drakosha eggplant, according to its description, is early ripening, it is advisable to plant it in early March, or better yet, at the end of February. The originating organization determines the timing of planting seeds for seedlings in the period from February 25 to March 5.

Growing seedlings does not have any features associated with varietal differences. A two- or three-component mixture of leaf (or leaf and turf) soil and peat is used as soil for seedlings. Before planting, seeds should be soaked for half an hour in a solution of 0.2% potassium permanganate. They do not need any pre-treatment or stratification.

Plants can be planted either in individual containers or in a common box, however, the first method is preferable, since young plants are difficult to tolerate damage to the root system during transplantation.

Usually, 2-3 seeds are placed in one hole to increase germination. Picking plants, carried out after the first leaves appear, leaves the strongest of the sprouted ones.

Planting in open ground

Planting in a greenhouse is carried out from May 1 to May 15, in open ground - from May 15 to June 15, depending on climatic conditions. Plants transplanted into a greenhouse do not require hardening. Otherwise, seedlings are hardened within 10 days before planting.

Plants are planted according to a pattern of 60 cm between plants and 40 cm between rows. The planting procedure is also standard: in holes up to 10 cm deep, a layer of humus up to 5 cm thick should be placed on the bottom. Young plants are installed in the center of the holes, covered with topsoil, compacted and watered abundantly.

Care after transplant

Further care for them is standard: it includes watering once every 3-5 days, depending on the moisture content of the top layer of soil. The formation of a bush for this variety is not necessary, since the bush, despite its relatively tall growth, is quite compact. Typically, the stem is tied to the support at one or two points.

Feeding may take the following form:

• planting: 30 g of superphosphate, 15 g of ammonium sulfate and 15 g of potassium chloride per 1 sq. m;
• during flowering: per 1 sq. m in 10 liters of water dilute 1 liter of mullein or 500 ml of chicken droppings;
• during fruiting: once every 2 weeks per 1 sq. m solution of 40 g of superphosphate in 10 liters of water.

Typically, fertilizing is combined with watering.

The soil under the plants should be loosened regularly. This is also done during watering - using any convenient tool (for example, a small rake with 3-4 teeth), the top layer of soil is loosened to a depth of about 2-3 cm.

Improved harvest quality

Usually 1-2 weeks after transplanting the plant, it begins to flower. Pollination occurs both with and without the participation of insects. In any case, human intervention is not required at this stage.

Important! When the ovaries are already formed, it is necessary to carefully examine them to ensure their normal appearance and development. If wrinkled or too bent ovaries are found, as well as those that grow very slowly, they should be removed.

This will help the plant not to spend extra resources on the formation of fruits with a deliberately low weight, which will increase the overall yield of the plant.

Pest and disease control

The variety in question was bred to be resistant to various diseases, so problems with its cultivation do not arise as often as with others. But you should still be aware of possible options for damage to plants and fruits in order to correct the situation if such a problem occurs.

Signs of improper care and their effect on the appearance of eggplant are often mistaken for a disease:

• lack of sunlight leads to the fact that the vegetable does not fully acquire its shade of purple;
• when moisture gets on the fruits in hot weather, cracks appear on them;
• leaf fall is often associated with the use of cold water for irrigation, excess moisture in the greenhouse, as well as the abuse of nitrogen fertilizers;
• the leaves curl and acquire a brown tint on the edges when there is a lack of potassium in the soil;
• elongated leaves of incomprehensible shape indicate a lack of phosphorus;
• “burnt out” leaf color signals the need to add nitrogen.

Spider mite
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The plant and its fruits can be affected by insect pests, most often spider mites, aphids, as well as slugs and mole crickets. From time to time you should inspect the bushes for the presence of foreign bodies in order to promptly identify insects and exterminate them.

You can fight them both by introducing special poisons, which can be bought at any specialized store, and with folk remedies. Chemicals should be applied according to the instructions, which are always on the package. Of the folk recipes, the most popular is spraying plants with a solution of wood ash. To get rid of slugs and mole crickets, you can spray the soil with a solution of water with the addition of mustard powder and ground pepper.