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Ping Tung Long Eggplant
  • Ping Tung Long Eggplant
  • Ping Tung Long Eggplant
  • Ping Tung Long Eggplant
  • Ping Tung Long Eggplant
Ping Tung Long Eggplant

Solanum melongena
$4.50
Description

Ping Tung is a disease resistant Taiwanese variety with shiny deep lavender fruits, that grow up to 11" long, making impressive filets in the kitchen! Their cylindrical shape also makes them convenient to dice into rounds for easy prepartion.

They are high yielding and tasty, producing about 20 fruits per plant. This has been a favorite at Siembra Farm, and with us too! Grown by the fine farmers and seed keepers at Common Wealth Seed Growers in Virginia.

Photos borrowed from Commonwealth Seed Growers and Fruition Seeds.
Product details
  • About 30 seeds
  • 75 days to harvest
  • Seeds sourced from Common Wealth Seed Growers in Virginia, a farmer-based seed company
How to grow

Eggplants love warm weather and really take off once temperatures are consistently warm. In our north Florida climate, we often wait until March or April to start seedlings, then transplant them outdoors once all threat of frost has passed and it’s consistently warm.

Sow seeds ¼–½ inch deep and transplant seedlings once they are well established. Give plants a final spacing of about 2–3 feet apart to allow plenty of room for their bushy growth and good airflow. They don’t always need staking, but healthy and fruit-laden plants may need a stake for extra support. 

Eggplants will grow best in fertile, healthy soil. Add compost or other organic fertilizers as needed, and keep the soil covered with a thick layer of leafy mulch. Keep plants adequately watered during extended dry periods, especially while they are flowering and producing fruit.
How to save seeds

Saving seed from eggplant is easy, but there’s an important trick: the eggplants you pick for eating are not mature enough for viable seed. Instead, you need to leave fruits on the plant for much longer than you normally would.

Allow your seed-saving fruits to mature fully on the plant until they lose their vibrant purple color and become a faded purple, turning brown or yellowish in color. The exact color change will vary by variety. Mature fruits also tend to become noticeably firmer than the soft, tender eggplants you harvest for eating.

For good genetic diversity, we recommend saving seed from at least 5–20 plants, with more always being better. Saving from a larger number of plants helps maintain genetic diversity and supports healthy, resilient crops over generations.

Once the fruits are fully mature, cut them open and scoop out the seeds. Mature eggplant seeds should be hard and brown. Place the seeds and surrounding material in a bowl of water and let them soak for a few hours. Remove the pulp and other non-seed material, along with any seeds that float—they are often less developed or lower quality. The good, mature seeds should sink to the bottom.

Rinse the seeds thoroughly, then spread them out on a cloth napkin or other breathable surface to dry completely. Once they are thoroughly dry, they are ready to store.

If you’re processing a large harvest for seed, there’s an easier way! Dice the mature eggplants into chunks and place them in a food processor with some water. Use a plastic dough blade and pulse just a few times, just enough to break up the fruit and release the seeds without pulverizing them. Add more water if needed, then separate the seeds from the pulp and floating debris.

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