Saving Eggplant Seeds

This year we planted an "egg" plant. It has been a lot of fun for my mother and I to grow. We saved the seeds to pass on to others next spring. What is this plant and how should we preserve the seeds?

Your plant is a white fruited eggplant. Often sold as an ornamental, it is edible. The interest in unusual shapes, colorful fruit and the beauty of the eggplant has lead to more breeding and evaluation of this plant to be used for ornamental not just edible purposes. You can save the seeds (as long as it is not a patented variety) though there is no guarantee it will come true. For best results allow several fruits to dry on the plant. The fruit will eventually drop off so you know the seeds are ripe. Cut the fruit removing the flesh and section that held the seeds. Put the rest in a bowl working it with your fingers as you add water. The seeds will start to separate and sink to the bottom. You may need to do this several times. Once clean, spread the seeds on a paper towel to dry. Then store in an opaque air tight container in a cool place like the refrigerator for the winter.

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