When should I plant eggplant outside?

Only once nights are reliably above 55–60°F, well past your last frost — eggplant resents cold even more than tomatoes do, and a chilled young plant can stall for weeks. Start seeds indoors 8–10 weeks early with bottom heat.

When do I pick eggplant?

Young, while the skin is taut and glossy and springs back when pressed. Once the skin turns dull, the seeds have hardened and the flesh turns bitter and spongy. Cut fruit regularly to keep the plant setting more.

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How to Grow Eggplant: Keep It Warm

GardenDraft Team · July 27, 2026 · 6 min read

Part of: Garden Planning Guides · How to Grow Vegetables — Crop Guides A–Z

Eggplant is the heat-lover of the nightshade family — even more so than its cousins tomatoes and peppers. Give it a long, warm season and it's a strikingly beautiful, productive plant. Rush it into cool soil and it sits and sulks. Almost everything about growing eggplant well comes back to keeping it warm.

Start early, plant late, keep it warm

Eggplant needs a long warm run, so start seeds indoors 8–10 weeks before your last frost, with bottom heat to germinate the slow seed. Then (this is the part people get wrong) wait to transplant. Eggplant resents cold even more than tomatoes do; set it out only when nights are reliably above 55–60°F, well past your last frost. A young eggplant chilled in cold soil can stall for weeks. Black plastic mulch or a warm, sheltered spot helps it get going.

Full sun, steady feeding and water

Plant in full sun, about 18–24 inches apart, in soil enriched with compost. Eggplant carries heavy fruit on a fairly compact plant, so a stake or small cage keeps it from toppling once loaded. Feed it through the season and water deeply and evenly. Like its nightshade relatives, inconsistent moisture stresses it and invites blossom end rot. A good mulch keeps the roots warm and the moisture steady, exactly what this plant wants.

Flea beetles are eggplant's main pest

Eggplant's number-one enemy is the flea beetle, which can riddle the leaves of a young plant with shotholes and stunt it badly. Protect transplants with a row cover until they're large and vigorous enough to outgrow the damage. Like all nightshades, eggplant should be rotated away from where tomatoes, peppers, or potatoes grew recently (see crop rotation).

Pick young and glossy

The biggest harvesting mistake is waiting too long. Eggplant is best picked young, while the skin is taut and glossy — press it lightly and it should spring back. Once the skin turns dull, the seeds inside have hardened and the flesh turns bitter and spongy. Cut fruit (don't pull — the stems are tough and prickly) and harvest regularly, which keeps the plant setting more. A steady-picked plant in a long warm summer is remarkably generous. Time your start and transplant on the planting calendar.

Frequently asked questions

When should I plant eggplant outside?: Only once nights are reliably above 55–60°F, well past your last frost — eggplant resents cold even more than tomatoes do, and a chilled young plant can stall for weeks. Start seeds indoors 8–10 weeks early with bottom heat.
When do I pick eggplant?: Young, while the skin is taut and glossy and springs back when pressed. Once the skin turns dull, the seeds have hardened and the flesh turns bitter and spongy. Cut fruit regularly to keep the plant setting more.