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How to grow Poached egg plant in the UK
Little flowers that look like fried eggs! Hoverflies love them, then eat your greenfly.
- DifficultyEasy peasy
- WhereBeds or Pots
- Sunfull sun or part shade
- Grows to15cm
- Spacing15cm
- Time to first pickabout 10 weeks
- Typeannual
When to sow, plant and harvest poached egg plant
| Sow outdoors | early March to mid May or early September to late September |
|---|---|
| Pick | mid May to mid August |
Dates are for central England. Sow about two weeks later in the north and Scotland, and up to two weeks earlier in the south and south west. Get the dates for your postcode.
Sowing it outdoors
- Pull out any weeds and rake the top of your bed until it's crumbly, like cake crumbs
- Make a little line in the soil (1cm deep) with your finger or a stick
- Drop the seeds in, about 15cm apart each way
- Gently cover them with soil and pat it down
- Water with a watering can that has a sprinkler head
- Push in a label so you remember what's there
Top tips for growing poached egg plant
- Great along the front edge of a bed.
- Sow some in September for flowers early next spring.
Soil and feeding
Poor soil - really!. Nasturtiums flower best in poor soil. Feed them and you get all leaves and no flowers.
Harvesting and eating poached egg plant
Just enjoy them - and watch for hoverflies (they look like tiny wasps but don't sting).
Companion planting
Grows well with
- Broad beans: brings hoverflies, whose babies eat blackfly
- Peas: brings hoverflies, whose babies eat greenfly
- Salad leaves: brings hoverflies, whose babies eat greenfly
- Strawberries: early flowers bring bees
- Raspberries: brings bees and hoverflies
Saving your own poached egg plant seed
It does it for you!.
- Leave a few flowers to set seed - it scatters them itself and new plants pop up next year
- To move them, dig up the seedlings in spring and replant them where you want them
- Or shake the dry seed heads into a paper bag in late summer
Where to buy poached egg plant seeds
Thompson & Morgan · Suttons · Amazon
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Poached egg plant questions
When should I sow poached egg plant in the UK?
In the UK, sow poached egg plant outdoors from early March to mid May or early September to late September. These dates suit central England; sow about two weeks later in the north and Scotland and up to two weeks earlier in the mild south and south west.
When can I pick poached egg plant?
Poached egg plant is ready from mid May to mid August. Just enjoy them - and watch for hoverflies (they look like tiny wasps but don't sting).
How long do poached egg plant take to grow?
Roughly 10 weeks from sowing or planting until the first harvest.
Are poached egg plant easy to grow?
Poached egg plant are rated 'easy peasy' for beginners, and can be grown in the ground or a raised bed or in pots and containers.
Plan your own garden: it tells you what to do and when, for your postcode.
Start growing - it's free