Growing brinjal
Solanum melongena · also called Baingan, Wangun (Kashmiri)A warm season fruit vegetable raised in a nursery and transplanted. It needs a long, sunny, frost-free season and bears over several months.
South interior: Bengaluru, Mysuru, interior Tamil Nadu
At a glance
Brinjal in the South interior
Nursery sown in December to January and in May to June9
About 6 to 7 months from nursery sowing to the last picking of the main crop; ratoon crops carry on longer.
No published guide covers this for the South interior, so this is an AI suggestion. Check it with local advice before you rely on it.December to January9
Part of this comes from the sources cited. The rest is an AI suggestion.55 to 60 days after sowing9
Across India
When to sow it
Twelve growing regions, January to December. Your region comes first.
Wait until December
The next sowing here is December to January.
- Nursery
- Transplant
- Harvest
- Under cover
- Today
Compare all 12 regionsShow fewer regions
See the dates as a table
| Region | Sow | Nursery | Transplant | Harvest |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| South interior | December to JanuaryMay to June | January to FebruaryJune to July | ||
| Temperate Himalaya | March to MayApril | April to JuneEnd of May | July to September | |
| Cold desertUnder cover only | Under cover: Late March to April, under cover | Under cover: May, in the greenhouse | Under cover: July to September | |
| Sub-tropical foothills | JanuaryFebruary to MarchMayMarch to AprilUnder cover: December, under low poly tunnels | FebruaryMarch to AprilJuneApril to MayUnder cover: January, into trenches | ||
| North-west plains | OctoberNovember, protected from frostFebruary to MarchJuly | NovemberFirst half of FebruaryBy the end of AprilAugust | ||
| Gangetic plains | October to NovemberMay to June | November to DecemberJune to July | ||
| North-east hills and valleys | Early September to OctoberJanuary to February | October to NovemberFebruary to March | ||
| Arid west | June to JulyOctober to NovemberFebruary to March | July to AugustNovember to DecemberMarch to April | ||
| Central plateau | June to JulyOctober to NovemberFebruary to March | July to AugustNovember to DecemberMarch to April | ||
| Deccan plateau | June to JulyOctober to NovemberFebruary to March | July to AugustNovember to DecemberMarch to April | ||
| West coast | May to June, before the monsoonSeptember to October | |||
| East coast | December to JanuaryMay to June | January to FebruaryJune to July |
From seed to harvest
One season, day by day
Days from sowing
Before sowing
Field preparation
Farmyard manure
25 tonnes per hectare
Mix in while preparing the field and forming ridges.
At planting
Azospirillum and phosphobacteria
2 kg each per hectare, mixed with 50 kg of FYM
Apply in the main field at planting.
Day 0
Sow
Day 180 to 210
Last picking
No published guide covers this for the South interior, so this is an AI suggestion. Check it with local advice before you rely on it.
Before sowing
Farmyard manure
25 tonnes per hectare · Mix in while preparing the field and forming ridges. · Field preparation
Azospirillum and phosphobacteria9
2 kg each per hectare, mixed with 50 kg of FYM · Apply in the main field at planting. · At planting
Day 0
Sow
Day 6 to 10
Seeds come up5,7Part of this comes from the sources cited. The rest is an AI suggestion.
Day 30 to 35
Day 55 to 60
First picking9
Every 4 to 5 days
Day 180 to 210
Last pickingNo published guide covers this for the South interior, so this is an AI suggestion. Check it with local advice before you rely on it.
Irrigate the furrows before transplanting, then water every week once the seedlings have settled. Drip irrigation on raised beds 120 cm wide is an option.9
What it needs
Soil, sun and warmth
Soil pH3,1,2
5.5 to 6.8
Grows on most soils, from light sandy to heavy clay, if they are deep, fertile and well drained. Silt loam and clay loam suit it most; sandy loam gives an earlier crop.
Sunlight1
Full sun. It needs a long, warm growing season with plenty of sunshine.
Temperature1,2,3
Grows best at 21 to 27 °C
Frost: none tolerated.
Monthly temperatures for the South interior aren't in the library yet.
Water and feeding
Watering9
Irrigate the furrows before transplanting, then water every week once the seedlings have settled. Drip irrigation on raised beds 120 cm wide is an option.
Weeding9
Hand weed once at about 30 days after planting.
| When | What | How much | How |
|---|---|---|---|
| Field preparation | Farmyard manure | 25 tonnes per hectare | Mix in while preparing the field and forming ridges. |
| At planting | Azospirillum and phosphobacteria | 2 kg each per hectare, mixed with 50 kg of FYM | Apply in the main field at planting. |
Varieties and yield
25 to 30 tonnes a hectare
Yields vary with the plot, the seed and the season.
CO 2
MDU 1
PKM 1
Annamalai
TNAU Brinjal VRM 1
Pests and diseases4
Organic and cultural controls only.
Shoot and fruit borer (Leucinodes orbonalis)
Signs
Caterpillars bore into tender shoots, which droop and dry, and then into the fruits, which show holes.
What to do
- Remove and destroy infested shoots and fruits at regular intervals until the last harvest.
- Put up pheromone traps from about 20 days after transplanting: 4 to 5 an acre to watch moth numbers, 10 an acre about 10 m apart for mass trapping. Change the lures regularly.
- Release the egg parasitoid Trichogramma chilonis every week from about 21 days after transplanting.
- Spray neem seed kernel extract 5%.
Prevention
- Grow two rows of brinjal to one row of coriander or fennel.
- Avoid growing brinjal and potato again and again on the same land.
- Grow tolerant varieties where they suit the region.
Hadda beetle (Epilachna vigintioctopunctata)
Signs
Grubs and adults scrape the leaf surface, leaving skeletonised leaves.
What to do
- Pick off grubs, pupae and adults by hand from skeletonised leaves and destroy them.
- Spray neem seed kernel extract 5%.
Prevention
- Conserve its parasitoid wasps and predatory bugs.
Jassid or leafhopper (Amrasca biguttula biguttula)
Signs
Sucks sap from the underside of leaves; leaves turn pale and curl. It also spreads little leaf.
What to do
- Remove affected parts.
- Spray neem seed kernel extract 5%.
- Conserve ladybird beetles and lacewings.
Prevention
- Grow okra as a trap crop.
Spider mites (Tetranychus species)
Signs
Pale specks on the leaves, fine webbing, then leaf drop in hot dry weather.
What to do
- Uproot and destroy infested plants while the mites are still on a few plants.
- Spray neem seed kernel extract 5%.
- Conserve predatory mites and lacewings.
Prevention
- Avoid water and nutrient stress; mulch and add organic matter to hold moisture.
- Keep the field free of weeds.
Stem borer
Signs
Caterpillars tunnel down the stem; plants droop and die.
What to do
- Uproot and destroy infested plants.
- Run a light trap at dusk, one an acre.
Prevention
- Do not keep a ratoon crop.
Root-knot nematode (Meloidogyne species)
Signs
Knot-like galls on the roots; plants stay small and yellow.
What to do
- Apply 2 tonnes of FYM enriched with 100 to 200 kg of neem or pongamia cake per acre in the main field.
Prevention
- Plough deep in summer.
- Solarise nursery beds under clear polythene for about three weeks before sowing.
Damping off
Signs
Seedlings rot at the base and fall over in the nursery.
What to do
- Treat seed with Trichoderma viride, 5 g per kg of seed, before sowing.
- Drench the nursery with Trichoderma viride.
Prevention
- Raise seedlings on beds more than 15 cm high or in pro-trays with a clean potting mix.
- Do not overwater; keep the nursery well drained.
Phomopsis blight
Signs
Brown spots on leaves and fruits; the fruit rots.
What to do
- Remove and destroy diseased plant debris.
Prevention
- Take seed only from healthy fruits and give it hot water at 50 °C for 30 minutes.
- Rotate with crops outside the tomato family and avoid brinjal after brinjal.
- Plough deep in summer.
- Grow resistant varieties.
Bacterial wilt
Signs
Plants wilt suddenly while still green.
What to do
- Mix Trichoderma viride with FYM and spread it over the field before planting.
- Use neem cake.
Prevention
- Grow resistant varieties.
- Rotate with maize, soybean, wheat, rice, sesame or a green manure.
- Grow a mustard-family green manure and dig it in.
- Solarise nursery soil under clear polythene for 8 to 10 weeks in March to June.
Little leaf (phytoplasma, spread by leafhoppers)
Signs
Leaves are tiny and crowded; plants turn bushy and bear no fruit.
What to do
- Pull out and destroy affected plants early.
- Keep leafhoppers down with the measures above.
Prevention
- Remove weeds of the tomato family.
- Grow tolerant varieties.
Seed and the season's end
Saving seed1,2,3
Grow seed plants at least 200 m from other brinjal varieties. Check the crop three times (at growth, at flowering and fruiting, and before harvest) and pull out off-types and diseased plants.
When the seed is ready
Seed fruits are ready when at least a third of the fruit has turned yellow.
Cleaning the seed
Cut or crush ripe fruits and leave them overnight. Work the seed out by hand in a tub of water: the flesh floats and the seed sinks. Wash several times and do it in the morning so the seed dries the same day.
Dry the seed straight after washing, in part shade, before packing and labelling it.
After the last pickingNo published guide covers this for the South interior, so this is an AI suggestion. Check it with local advice before you rely on it.
After the last picking of the main or ratoon crop, pull out the plants and destroy any with wilt or little leaf. Follow with a cereal or a pulse.
Remove and destroy infested plants and crop residues straight after the last harvest, so borers and disease do not carry over to the next crop.
Rotation
Do not grow brinjal on the same land year after year. Rotate with crops outside the tomato family, such as maize, soybean, wheat, rice, sesame or a green manure, which also lowers bacterial wilt. Avoid following brinjal with potato.
Sources
Where this comes from
Our team has checked this guide against the sources at the end of the page.Reviewed by our team on 13 November 2026.
These published guides are the sources. Where none of them covers a detail for this region, the page shows an AI suggestion and labels it.
- Production Technology of Vegetables and Flowers (VSF-231), Part I: Vegetable production (Brinjal)CSK Himachal Pradesh Krishi Vishvavidyalaya, Palampur (College of Agriculture course notes)Read the source
- AESA based IPM package: BrinjalNational Institute of Plant Health Management (NIPHM) and Directorate of Plant Protection, Quarantine and Storage, Government of IndiaRead the source
- Brinjal: package of practices (source NHB)Vikaspedia (Government of India), citing the National Horticulture BoardRead the source
- Brinjal (eggplant): varieties developed by IIVR and cultivation detailsICAR-Indian Institute of Vegetable Research, VaranasiRead the source
- Horticulture: Vegetables: Brinjal (season, seed, cultural practices, manuring, irrigation, yield, varieties), TNAU Agritech PortalTamil Nadu Agricultural University, CoimbatoreRead the source
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