Aubergines, are they perrenial?

While I was up the allotment the other week, one of the guys up there was telling me theat he'd read somewhere about Aubergines being treated as perrenials, and that you can keep them for next year?

Has anyone else heard this at all? Does anyone know how to do it? He suggested cutting them back, and overwintering them like Dahlias, do you think this would work? anyone with experience of doing this?

Hi Sue, It does say that aubergines are a short lived perennial, but I've never tried over-wintering them. They are so prone to fungal diseases and insect and slug damage that it seems sensible to chuck them out and start afresh each year, although now you've suggested it, I might give one a try if it is in good condition.

I must say I have had no success with other things they say are perennial like runner beans which I've lifted and potted up and brought inside.

I've also got some chilli peppers which are said to be perennial and I'm going to try them too. I think if you keep things slightly on the dry side over the winter months they sometimes survive - obviously in a frost free place.

I like experimenting, so I'll give them all a try and will be grateful for any tips from anyone who has had success doing this.

Pat

Are you talking about what we call egg plants in the States? Paul

Hi Paul,

yes, I do believe that they are also known as eggg plants.

ok i have kept theam as a perennial but the thing is the plant gets very woody and makes small fruit i think if you cut theam back they will do better also tomatoes are perennial here to in florida same thing tho they get woody and make small fruit i kept one alive for 3 years. regards paul ps the egg plant about 2

Thanks Paul, by the sound of it, it's better to start with fresh plants each year then? Am I reading you right there?

I wondered that they might have been like fuschias, growing bigger each year if you keep them, but it seems not.

I'm narked because I did sow seeds of Aubergines this year in my greenhouse (and along with many other precious seeds) mice ransacked the pots and eat the lot!!...So I ended up having to go and buy plants from a store at 99p each!!...now I'm not a skinflint, but I do begrudge having to pay the almost same for one plant as a packet of seeds for many...but thanks for the reply...guess I'll have to try and find a way to protect next years seeds from maurauding mice...

Paul's comments are interesting, but I should think they would have far greater chance of getting through the Florida winter in good condition than an icy British one. I do agree that it wrankles to pay so much for one plant when you can get dozens from a packet at not much more money. You will have to save the seeds Sue and get even better value. If you have more than one variety, put a net, or piece of tights over a clump of flowers before it opens. They are self fertile, so tap the flower or the stem to trigger the pollen, then take off the cover after about a week, but mark the fruit so you know which one you are saving and leave it until it is extremely ripe, it usually goes brownish, so way past you would pick it to eat.

Then comes the fun part. Bash the fruit with a mallet on a chopping board to loosen the seeds then tear it apart in water and the seeds will release. Clean them by shaking them in a jam jar of water and keep pouring off and re-filling until they are clean. The good seeds will be quite heavy and sink to the bottom so get rid of any that float. Then pour off all the water through a sieve and dry the seeds on a plate and dessicate and pack in the usual way.

Has anyone tried the veg catalogue from Plants of distinction yet, they have some interesting Aubergine varieties by the looks of it?