Eggplant is capricious and heat-loving, so it is usually grown in greenhouses.
But experienced gardeners, through trial and error, have realized that this vegetable grows much better in open ground if suitable conditions are created for it.
Greenhouses have several disadvantages that you should be aware of if you want to get an excellent harvest.
Minus one: lack of nutrition
As a rule, the soil in a greenhouse quickly becomes depleted, since either voracious cucumbers, or equally voracious eggplants, or tomatoes and peppers are grown there year after year, which also take out a lot of nutrients, leaving behind toxins that suppress all plants of the nightshade family.
According to the rules, in a greenhouse at least once every 3 years you need to completely change the soil, but in reality, not everyone can do this. And eggplants are very demanding in terms of nutrition. In open ground, as a rule, the soil is much more nutritious, since different crops alternate there and nutrients accumulate.
Minus two: diseases
If the problem with the nutritional value of the soil can be solved by adding fertilizers or replacing the soil, then diseases accumulate in a closed space much more actively than in the conditions of the "wild nature". Outside, they die in the sun, when crops are alternated, from frost, they are displaced by other microorganisms that easily get into the garden bed.
The greenhouse is the patrimony of pathogens. They feel good there and always have food, since the range of crops is limited. And eggplants get sick very quickly. Even if tomatoes survive, the "blue ones" will definitely catch some kind of disease.
Minus three: spider mites
The spider mite simply loves eggplants. And greenhouse conditions. For the sake of the "eggplants" it will even refuse the coveted cucumbers. On the street, its spread is hindered by wind, temperature changes and rain. But a greenhouse is simply a paradise for this pest.
Minus four: high temperature
Many gardeners think that since the plant is heat-loving, it needs as much heat as possible. And a greenhouse on a hot summer day can heat up to 50 degrees. But already at 30 degrees, eggplants do not set fruit, stop growing, turn yellow, and wither. It is good if you can shade the greenhouse and fully ventilate it.
In open ground the temperature is lower, the air cools down faster in the evening. And when it gets colder, the bed can be covered with spunbond or film.
Minus five: no pollination
To get a full harvest, flowers must be pollinated. In a greenhouse, natural pollination is difficult, so every morning, gardeners go to the eggplants with a brush to brush the flowers with the bristles.
In open ground, this is done by bees, bumblebees and other insects.
Open ground has many advantages, but there is one significant disadvantage - a lot depends on the weather. In a cold, rainy summer, you won't get a harvest outside. But you can resort to one trick - plant some eggplants in open ground, and some in a greenhouse.
