Part of the Nightshade family, like tomatoes and peppers, aubergines are a popular vegetable around the world. But can you grow them in the UK?
Originated from Asia and Africa, according to the National History Museum, the aubergine has been used for food, medicine and clothing for thousands of year.
Today it’s an important crop worldwide and used in many different cuisines. Like other vegetables, aubergines contain a range of beneficial nutrients, including fibre, protein, magnesium, potassium, as well as vitamins C and A.
Because of it’s texture, it’s often used as a meat substitute. We like to use it in curries instead of meat, and love how it adds an extra layer of flavour.
And the good news is, you can grow them here in this country. So let’s find out how to grow aubergines in the UK.
Choosing The Right Aubergine Variety For You
As aubergines originated in warmer climates than the UK, many gardeners grow them in a greenhouse or polytunnel. However, there are varieties that can be grown outdoors, so it’s important to choose the right variety for your garden setup.
Even if you have only a small growing space, there are options for you, with dwarf varieties that work well in small spaces or containers.
So here are some of my favourite varieties to try depending on what space you have:
- Black Beauty – probably one of the most popular varieties in UK gardens and allotments, producing deep purple tear drop shaped fruits, the most common type that you can also buy in supermarkets. You’ll need a greenhouse or polytunnel though, as this variety does best under glass
- Pinstripe F1 – if you’re shorter on space, maybe you only have a mini greenhouse, this dwarf variety is a great fit. It produces small purple and white striped fruit, that look beautiful and taste delicious. Ideal for containers as well
- White Knight F1 – if you want something different, this variety is for you, as it produces long white aubergines. It can be grown in a greenhouse or outdoors and is compact enough to do well in containers in small spaces too
- Green Knight F1 – or try the green variety, that will produce long green fruits. Personally, I would recommend to grow one of each, if you have the space
- Jackpot F1 – an early cropper that will continue to produce dark purple fruits over a long period. It’s suitable for growing outdoors and is compact too, so will grow well in pots
As you can see, there is quite a good choice of different varieties, so you’ll sure to find one that fits your growing environment, even if this is just a patio or balcony.
Sowing Your Aubergine Seeds
Now that’s out of the way, let’s get down to it…
Like with tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, and courgettes, you start off your aubergines by sowing seeds indoors. When you start depends on whether you’re planning on growing them outdoors or indoors:
- For growing in a greenhouse or ploytunnel: January/February
- For growing outdoors: March
Aubergines grow rather slowly and need a long growing season, so seeds tend to be sown earlier than with other vegetables.
Fill a small pot with fine, good quality seed compost, add two aubergine seeds and cover with a thin layer of compost (6mm).
Top Tip: Water the compost in the pot before you sow the seeds, to prevent the seeds from floating to the edges.
Place the pot in a warm place, such as a sunny windowsill, a heated propagator, or even an airing cupboard. You want a spot for your aubergine seeds that gets to around 20°C (68°F).
If you use the airing cupboard, make sure you take out the seedling as soon as it has emerged and place it in a light spot, like a windowsill.
Keep seedlings well watered and transplant into a bigger pot once the first true leaves (the second set of leaves) appear. Continue to pot on your aubergine plant until it’s time to plant it in its final growing spot.
Planting Out Your Aubergine Plant
When you plant out your aubergine plant depends on the weather and whether you intend on growing your aubergine outdoor or under glass.
For outdoor growing, you have to wait until any risk of frost has passed. In most of the UK this will be in June, but can vary. Aubergines are quite tender plants and can’t tolerate frost, so it’s also important to harden the plants off before planting them out.
For about a week or so, put them outdoors in their pots for a few hours at a time. Start with short periods and extend them slowly. After a week or maybe 10 days they will have acclimatised to the outdoor conditions and are ready to be planted out.
Choose a sunny and sheltered spot for the best growing conditions. Remember, aubergines come from tropical climates, so need a lot of warmth to produce a good crop.
For growing in a greenhouse or polytunnel, wait until the night time temperatures don’t dip below 10°C (50°F). This is most likely around May, but can vary throughout the UK.
If you have a heated greenhouse or polytunnel, you can plant your young aubergines as early as April, as long as you can keep night time temperatures warm enough.
Wherever you plan to grow your aubergines, you want well-prepared soil that’s full of nutrients, as these are hungry plants. You also need well-draining soil, as aubergine roots don’t like being too wet.
You can prepare the soil by either digging in homemade compost or well-rotted manure, or add a layer of mulch, if you have a no-dig garden.
I like to add a layer of our own compost in autumn after the end of the growing season and then a layer of leaf mulch in spring. This provides all the nutrients my veg plants need and it reduces the amount of weeding I have to do.
Refer to the seed packet for information about how much room to leave between plants, as this depends on the variety.
If you are growing your aubergine plants in pots, make sure you choose a container that is at least 30cm (12in) wide and deep and fill it with good quality, peat-free compost or your own homemade compost. One plant per pot is recommended.
Caring For Your Aubergine Plants
Depending on the variety, you might want to provide your plants with support. Bamboo canes are ideal for this purpose. Just put one into the soil next to the plant after planting out and attach the stem to it as it grows.
Dwarf varieties won’t need this, as they tend to be more compact and bushy.
In order to produce fruit, aubergine need the help of pollinators. So make sure you encourage pollinating insects to your garden, for example by planting their favourite flowers near by.
I always grow my aubergines in our polytunnel, so to make sure the pollinators get in, I leave one door open a bit. In May/June, when temperatures are a bit lower, I only do this during the warmest time of the day.
Once it heats up, I open one door in the morning and close it in the evening. You want to make sure that pollinators find your aubergine plants, but also keep the temperatures in your greenhouse or polytunnel high enough.
Water your aubergines regularly, especially during dry periods. They are thirsty plants. You can also mulch around the plants to help with water retention.
During really hot weather, I wet our polytunnel floor in the morning. As the water evaporates during the day it raises the humidity levels, creating ideal conditions for aubergines, tomatoes, chillies and cucumbers.
Once they have started to flower, it’s time to feed them. I use the liquid fertiliser we get from our wormery, as this is the best food for any veg plants in my opinion. Apart from a wide range of nutrients, it also contains beneficial microorganisms that improve the soil health. (Yatoo et al., 2021)
In addition to that, the worms release a substance that kills pathogens (harmful microorganisms), which is also present in the liquid and keeps the soil pathogen-free. (Alkobaisy et al., 2021)
If you don’t have a wormery, you can use commercial liquid feed high in potash, like this one I used to use before we got a wormery.
- Easy to apply simply mix with water in a watering can according to instructions
- For tomatoes and flowering pot plants
- With seaweed extract for maximum growth and better crops
If you want to increase your yield, pinch out the top of the main stem, like you do with tomatoes, when the plant is around 30cm (12in) high. This will encourage side shoots and more fruits.
For some variety, such as the Pinstripe F1, it’s recommended to remove any flowers once the plant has a certain amount of fruits. For the Pinstripe F1 that’s 3-4, but generally the number is 5-6.
This will ensure that the plant focuses its energy on ripening the fruit rather than growing more flowers.
Harvesting Your Aubergine Plants
Depending on the variety, you can start to harvest from around July/August. You want the fruit to be fully ripe, with still a glossy skin. Check the seed packet for concrete instructions for your variety.
Most aubergine plants have spiny stems, which can make harvesting a bit unpleasant. I tend to use a knife to cut off the fruit close to the stem.
It’s important to harvest regular to encourage the plant to ripen remaining fruit and develop new ones.
Pests And Diseases Affecting Aubergines
Now that you know how to grow aubergines in the UK, let’s talk about potential pests and diseases you should be aware of.
Pests
Like most plants, aubergines can be affected by aphids, a small sap-sucking insect. Small numbers aren’t likely to cause any harm, so try to tolerate them whenever possible. To keep numbers down, here are some natural ways:
- Encourage natural predators of aphids to your garden – letting nature do it’s thing means a natural balance will be created where beneficial insects such as ladybirds and hoverflies control aphid numbers in your garden
- Use companion planting to put aphids off your veg plants – plants like basil, garlic, onions, marigolds, and rosemary can repel aphids with their scent, so planting them with your aubergines will keep them save from aphids
- Wash your plants with insecticidal soap – as a last resort, if an aphid infestation hits your aubergine plants, your can wash them off with a natural soap
- Pure organic cold pressed neem oil concentrate unrefined one 1000ml bottle
- Gentle biodegradable liquid soap derived from plant oils one 1000ml bottle
- Combine together with water to form a neem spray or drench
Personally, I use the first two with great effect. While early in the season aphids are on my veg plants, soon their natural predators come out and keep their numbers down. I haven’t had a problem with aphids since using these natural pest control methods.
The way we encourage beneficial insects is by having created a wildflower meadow, which brings all sorts of helpful creatures to our garden.
My favourite companion for aubergine plants in my polytunnel is basil. It repels aphids as well as whitefly.
Whitefly are similar to aphids, but with wings. They tend to only be an issue in greenhouses and polytunnels. Again, try to tolerate them as much as possible as small numbers won’t harm your aubergine plants.
The help of natural predators and companion planting are equally effective with these winged sap-sucking insects. But it’s also useful to clean your polytunnel or greenhouse in autumn, to get rid of any that have hoped to overwinter there.
Red spider mites are another pest that is mainly an issue if you grow your aubergines indoors. The same measures we have already described will help with these creatures too.
But if you also keep your greenhouse or polytunnel humid, these red mites won’t like it, as they prefer dry conditions. So spraying your plants with some water can help to keep red spider mites away.
Diseases
There aren’t actually many diseases that will affect aubergine plants, which is great news. But to make sure, give them space and don’t pant anything too close to them.
This will allow for good air circulation, which helps keep fungal diseases at bay.
One thing you might encounter is blossom end rot. It’s not actually a disease, it’s caused by a lack of calcium in the fruit.
It’s easy to spot, as the bottom of the fruits will turn brown and sink in. It’s more likely to occur in plants that are grown in containers, so make sure you keep them watered well to ensure a good supply of that mineral.
In greenhouses or polytunnels, high humidity can also cause it, so keep the space well ventilated by opening the doors in very hot and dry weather.
So now that you know how to grow aubergines in the UK, why not give it a go. Happy Growing!
