How to Harvest Eggplant Seeds: A Step-by-Step Guide

Suppose you want to save your eggplant seeds for next season but don’t know how to harvest them. Then you end up at the right place because I will tell you precisely what you need to do.

Harvesting eggplant seeds is pretty simple; you can do it even if it’s your first time harvesting it. I’ve been doing it for more than decay, and now let me tell you what you need and what you will do in the blog below.

Why Harvest Eggplant Seeds:

There are different reasons for eggplant seeds collection, some of which are given below.

• Preserving Varies: One of the most common reasons is preserving the seeds so you can grow them next year. You also need to preserve seeds if you grow a unique or expensive eggplant, so have that variety as well.
• Cost-Effective: Most new gardeners buy seeds whenever they want to grow eggplants or any other plant. Instead of buying new seeds yearly, you should save your eggplant seeds.
• Important Varities: Sometimes, you have some important heirloom verities to keep, so you should keep your heirloom tomatoes.

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When to Harvest Eggplant Seeds:

Harvesting seeds on its required time is necessary. The best time to harvest is when the eggplant is fully mature and ripened. During the stage, when the eggplant turn brown or yellow then its the time right time. Well, it depends upon your region; it could be early fall or late summer. If you don’t know your region time for harvest then you should confirm it by its color.

How to Harvest Eggplant Seeds for Planting:

Now, let’s discuss the process of collecting the eggplant seeds. There are set of tools that you will need for this process, which are,

Knife, bowl, and paper towel.

Now, let’s go into the process of harvesting eggplant seeds.

• Step 1: Choose a healthy, ripened eggplant because thy have high-quality seeds.
• Step 2: Now pluck that eggplant and cut it open with a knife. Make the cut half lengthwise to expose the seeds in the middle.
• Step 3: Now the next step would be to scoop out the seeds from eggplant and put into a bowl.
• Step 4: Put some water into the bowl to separate viable and immature seeds. By adding watering, the viable seeds will be set in the bottom while the immature seeds will float on the top, so pour off the top water to remove those immature seeds with other debris.
• Step 5: In the next step, dry those viable seeds with a paper towel.

Now these seeds are has the power to become new plants. They are ready to dry and store for the next growing season.

How to Dry and Store Eggplant Seeds:

The seeds you collected is not dry, and can’t be grown into a full plant. So, to make it able, you need to dry it first.

Drying Eggplant Seeds:

Drying eggplant seeds is a simple step.

• First, take your seeds and put them on a dry paper towel. You can also use a drying mate if you have one.
• You should place it somewhere ventilated in your house but away from direct sunlight.
• Keep the seed there for about a week or so. When they become hard and brittle, then they are ready.

Storying the Eggplant Seeds:

After the seed become dry and ready, now its time to store it next season. Once dry, you should store it in an airtight container. You should also label it with its name and harvest date so it cannot be mixed with other seed bottles. You should keep the container cool and away from sunlight. Those seeds are viable for 5 to 6 years.

A Common Mistake to Avoid:

During my first years of harvesting eggplant seeds, I made many mistakes, some of which are listed below. I’m mentioning it so you should avoid it.

• Harvesting too early is not a good decision, and you could end up with immature seeds.
• Another common mistake that most new gardeners make is to store the seeds in damp locations, which leads to mold growth and seed rot.
• While selecting your eggplant, choose one with no diseases, which could then be transferred into next season’s crops.

Conclusion:

Harvesting the seeds of your eggplant is a simple process that is surprisingly rewarding. The process is simple and easy. Just follow the abovementioned process, and you will harvest eggplant seeds independently. If you have any questions, feel free to ask, and for more guides, visit gardencrafting.com.