Egg Plant fruit
The Egg Plant, also known as Bringal, Aubergine, Egg-apple, and Mad-apple, is an herbaceous plant belonging to the Night-shade family, therefore kin to the potato and tomato. It is a tender annual, readily killed by the early frosts. It has rather large, simple, somewhat incised leaves. The fruits are large, egg-shaped, tomato-like in structure, hence berries.
It is quite extensively cultivated in gardens. The seeds are sown in hot beds early in April, but transplanting is not done until about the first of June, when all danger of frost is past. The soil should be very rich and the plants set about three feet apart. Like most transplanted plants, they require shading and watering for a few days. Careful cultivation is required during the entire season.
Propping may be necessary to keep the large, heavy fruits from the ground. The Colorado beetle is a very annoying enemy of the growing plants and must be effectually fought to insure a crop.
There are several varieties of egg plant. The purple variety is by long odds the greatest favorite. There are also white and yellow varieties.
Most people consider the properly prepared fruit of the egg plant a delicacy. In some tropical countries it forms an important article of diet. The ripe fruit is prepared for the table by peeling and boiling. After boiling the fruit is sliced, seasoned, and fried until well browned in rolled crackers or bread crusts and a liberal supply of butter.
When well prepared it is a very palatable article of diet, but when insufficiently cooked or fried it is indigestible. It does not seem to be prepated in other ways, nor does it seem to have any noteworthy medicinal properties.
Egg Plant picture