is it too late for my aubergines to fruit?

[queen of the cobs]

I have 6 plants, all a couple of feet high and pretty bushy, but only one has any fruit. Do you think it's too late for fruit to set now? Should I compost the plants and focus on my chillis, which are finally fruiting!

damn this wet and gloomy summer - it's my first year of an allotment and it's all been a bit hit and miss with the blight and the weeds.

[Alison]

I should be so lucky as to have even one that's set! This is the worst year I've had for aubergenes - hopefully it's the weather to blame and not me! The plants are wonderfully healthy and have been flowering for weeks but no sign of fruit. Am guessing it's getting a bit late now unless you have a minature fruiting variety but will be interested to see what folks who really know about this have to say.

[blackcatlois]

aubergines

Not a single fruit on mine yet either but a fair few flowers - however mine have red spider mite which I have only just found a suitable treatment for so now I'm thinking myself it might be too late. Oh well... not sure whether I'll bother next year as last year I only managed two small fruits per plant anyway!

[Paulottie]

I think the best remedy for spidermite is a predator mite...persimillus phytosylis? i think its called but probably not spelled. I've got a friend who breeds them if you want her number then PM me.

Mine are only just flowering but looking heathy so i'm hoping like the rest of you

[Forget-me-Not]

Hi,

I've got one fruit which is about the size of a small tomato right now and otherwise just flowers and good plant growth. It's in a terracotta tub in my scruffy greenhouse with a polystyrened up broken window and is ventilated by opening the door!!!!!

Beth

[heebiejeebie]

Not even flowers on mine!

[Curvy Vixen]

I bought one at the weekend (I'm such a sucker!) and it has a half sized fruit and a small tomato sized fruit and lots of flowers. Some of the others in the garden centre were the same way so I'd say if you have the space then hang on in there!

[valmarg]

qocc, I'd leave them a while longer, so long as they are not taking up space you want to use for something else.

I think this has been a lousy summer for them (along with most other things). The sun we have been having recently seems to have suited them, and ours are starting to set. I don't think they will be prize winning enormous fruits, but at least its beginning to look as though we should get some.

valmarg

[Headfry]

Mine are the same, 4-5 late flowers - no fruit ......a bad year!
still there is always next year!

[smallblueplanet]

We grow ours in the greenhouse border, they like lots of heat and light so I've kept the door shut as much as possible! (They also like humidity, but they've been on the dry side to try and stave off any chance of blight on the toms.)

Its been a fairly poor year for them so although the plants are healthy we've had just a few fruits. Well we pick ours smallish size so we've had a fair few rosa bianca which we grew for the first time this year, they have been early and relatively quick growing. We've also grown applegreen which are also early but not been as many as the rosa b's. The ichibans that are elongated purple have just started to produce and we've had one ping tung long (also elongated but pinky/purple).

They're still setting but nothing like last year. We tend to grow smaller fruiting varieties and pick at about "tennis ball x one and a half size" to "tennis ball size" to keep the smaller fruit growing on.

[PAULW]

Being shrub like, would it be possible to over winter the plant in a greenhouse or cold frame then instead of waiting for the plant to grow and then fruit, you would already have a grown plant that would be off and running in the spring.

[Seahorse]

I'm sure it's more a case of beginners luck than any skill on my part but mine seem to be doing quite well. We've eaten a couple already and on my three plants, there are another 8 swelling plus loads of tiny set ones. It is a variety you harvest small though - Calliope F1s from T&M.

Claire

[Heidi]

About a month or so ago we lost one half-grown aubergine to a slug

But now both plants are flowering again and i think are setting fruit, its just whether the weather holds out long enough for them to ripen. Fingers crossed!

Our peppers have been worse - after an infestation of green-fly they lost all their flowers, but since we've got rid of the green fl;y they've started to pick up again and are now flowering again - its all dependent on the weather now as to if fruit that have/will set will grow enough to be edible.