Image Courtesy of amishlandseeds.com

By the end of each gardening season I have usually compiled a list of plants I want to grow next year. If you keep a list like this you can be prepared to either start your plants from seed, visit the nursery when they are likely to have it, or special order it when you are ready to plant it. Solanum integrifolium has been on my list for a few years and now, after all the infrastructure I’ve put in this last summer, I have the perfect place to grow one. Since it’s an annual I think I will just start it from seed. I’ve never seen starts available in a nursery for Solanum integrifolium.

Solanum integrifolium (also known as Solanum aethiopicum) is one of those plants with many different monikers, which hints to me that there is some interesting cultural history behind it. Other names for Solanum integrifolium include: Scarlet Eggplant, Chinese Scarlet Eggplant, Japanese Golden Eggs, Japanese Golden Eyes, Turkish Orange, Mock Tomato, Pumpkin Tree, Pumpkin Bush, Mini Pumpkins or Pumpkins on a stick. You see them every year in October and sometimes even into November, in the fresh flower section of the grocery, or if you’re lucky you’ll find them at the Farmers Market.

Although it’s true that this will be a attractive addition to my garden and provide some seasonal bouquets in mid to late fall, the reason I want this plant is that it will attract butterflies, birds and bees. And I think I will just let the birds eat it, because this edible heirloom form of eggplant is said to have a slightly bitter taste. I’ll stick with other forms of eggplant for my table. Its mini-pumpkin like fruits follow purple blooms that open in late summer to early fall. Some varieties may have more of a whitish flower with a yellow center. It grows to a maximum height of about 4 feet and it can be grown in containers. I might have to try starting some for the front porch for next fall.

I think I’m too late to start it indoors and have it winter over outside so it will have to wait for spring. One of the many reasons I love gardening: there’s always next year.