Hand Pollinating Eggplant

[prettygurl]

How much luck do you have with the paintbrush method? I'm 50/50 with the electric toothbrush. I am wondering if I should switch.

[tomc]

I'm putting my wager on eggplant being another perfect bloom. I'd probably stick with the electric toothbrush.

Disassembling the bloom and manually applying pollen is something to do when breeding eggplant, not trying to get a crop in. But thats just my unwillingness to stuff my face in the dirt--talkin'.

[veggiedan]

For eggplant and others, I just smoosh my finger gently into one flower, in a non-destructive way, and then smoosh it gently into the other. Seems to work fine. I've heard of people using paintbrushes, but I've never understood why.

[prettygurl]

This is a very tiny flower so there is no hand smooshing! I am trying to grow bambinos indoors.

[veggiedan]

Ah, I've just grown asian eggplants, and the flowers are about half an inch across. So yes, even for that, you've got to smoosh with some delicacy.