aubergines won't set

[KG Steve]

This year my aubergines, which are growing in my small polytunnel, have failed to set. Great plants (in large pots)quite a few blooms. However, all but 3 just dropped off. Wondered if it was the very hot, dry summer that had caused something like the dry set that toms suffer from. Any ideas anyone?

[retropants]

hi there steveo! you could try misting the plants, this will help the fruits set. If you can't use a hosepipe because of the ban, drizzle them with a watering can with the rose attached. Hope this helps!

[KG Steve]

Cheers retropants!
I'll give it a try. There's hope for some Ratatouille yet!

[Wellie]

Hi Steve,

It's getting VERY late in the season now for Aubergines, and if they do 'set' they'll be baby aubergines, which you'd pay a FORTUNE for in the supermarkets, and I've got them coming as a kind of 'bonus crop' too. They'll do OK, provided we get more sunshine for a while yet to ripen them sufficiently.
Whilst Aubergines like humid conditions, I would steer away from 'watering overhead' of them. Misting would be fine, but Aubergines don't like being 'watered' from above, allegedly. Keep the compost in the tubs moist, but not too wet if you can, and keep up with watering full-strength potash liquid feed like Tomarite, as the plants wlll be 'running out of puff' now I shouldn't wonder...
Good luck with them...

[Johnboy]

Hi Steve,
I have a 1.5 Litre pressure sprayer and it is the best for misting as the mist is much finer than you can deliver from a hose and hoses are such cumbersome things to manipulate but the pressure sprayer is light and very easy to manipulate and really superior for the job. Strangely I bought mine at the Malvern Autumn Show about 5 years ago. A great pity this thread was not last week.
I appreciated our chat on Sunday.
JB.

[Primrose]

I have grown just one enormous aubergine plant this year which has totally astonished me with the number of fruits it has produced. It wilted quite badly in the July heatwave but I found that keeping it misted quickly restored the leaves & flowers. Until I got myself a large pump spray to mist my climbing beans, I used an empty household ddisinfectant plastic handspray which worked perfectly effectively. I also kept it extremely well watered & fed with Tomorite, so I suspect that a high humidity atmosphere is the secret.

[KG Steve]

cheers guys. Looks like I'll have to break with tradition and spend some money on a new pressure sprayer before I grow any more aubergines next year. Did manage a few full size fruit, but nothing like last year, so guess you are right about the lack of humidiy this year when the flowers were trying to set.
Have finally given up on the plants and picked a few extra baby aubergines as a bonus as wellie suggested before consigning them to the compost.
Good meeting you too JB, looking forward to next spring.
CC