Solanum aethiopicum seed
LATIN NAME: Solanum aethiopicum
COMMON NAME: Scarlet Eggplant
The scarlet eggplant lanterns the small, orange-red fruits among the lobed, velvety leaves, the whole plant carrying the fine, bright look of the warm kitchen garden. The fast-growing, annual or short-lived, perennial herb carries the large, softly lobed, slightly hairy leaves along the erect, branched stems, and the small, white or pale-purple, star-shaped flowers in the small clusters through the summer, one of the bright, quiet sights of the warm kitchen garden, drawing the bees, to be followed by the small, round or flattened, ribbed, orange-red or scarlet fruits. The scarlet fruits have a very long record as the fine, garden fruits of the warm lands, and the plant is a historic presence of the warm kitchen garden. It is a plant of the open, sunny, deep, rich, moist, well-drained ground.
Scientific Research & Plant Biotechnology
The scarlet eggplant is a historic subject of the plant science, and the star-shaped flowers keep showing up in the work on the garden fruits. The way the small, white or pale-purple, star-shaped flowers form in the small clusters has been studied at length, and it keeps appearing in the studies of the garden fruits, the lobed leaves and the members of the nightshade family. The scarlet fruits and the quick habit have also made it a fine study herb, and the scarlet eggplant is a regular subject of the work on the star-shaped flowers of the warm world.
Ecological & Economic Value & Wide Applications
The scarlet eggplant is a bright, useful plant of the warm kitchen garden and the study collection. The large, softly lobed, slightly hairy leaves along the erect, branched stems carry the bright look of the warm kitchen garden, one of the bright, quiet sights of the warm kitchen garden, drawing the bees, and the scarlet fruits have a very long record as the fine, garden fruits of the warm lands, the firm fruits coming to the old pots and the steady practice of the warm kitchens, while the small, white or pale-purple, star-shaped flowers in the small clusters open through the summer, to be followed by the small, round or flattened, ribbed, orange-red or scarlet fruits. It is one of the fine choices for the warm kitchen garden, the ornamental pot and the study collection, and it has been written up in the horticultural and the culinary papers for the scarlet fruits and the very long history. It is a bright, useful plant of the open, sunny, deep, rich, moist, well-drained garden.
The eggplant seeds start easily in a light, loamy mix kept warm and moist. The young plants are quick and vigorous, and they enjoy the deep, rich ground of the warm kitchen garden.
To grow the scarlet eggplant from seed, sow the tiny, flat seeds thinly across the surface of the seed tray of light, loamy soil, water gently, then keep the tray in a bright, warm spot. The seedlings appear within a couple of weeks, and they grow on fast. With the sun and the deep, rich, moist ground, the scarlet lanterns will hang over the warm months.
Uses: Culinary/Medicinal
(Mock tomato; Ethiopian nightshade) The deeply creased bright red fruits look a little like miniature beefsteak tomatoes. But the ripe red fruits are too bitter for most, which is why the plant is sometimes called "mock tomato". The immature green fruits are said to be less bitter but are probably still too bitter for most western tastes. The young leaves are edible and are cooked and eaten across Africa, from the Horn of Africa to West Africa. Each country has its own form and this particular one is from a small village in Uganda. Easy to grow as a summer annual. Like eggplants start seeds indoors and transplant to a sunny, well-drained location after the threat of frost is past.