Eggplant/aubergine growing little tubular bits instead of leaves

Question

G'day

I'm growing some eggplants in a raised garden bed. They have been fairly productive over the last month or two, but have recently begun growing small tubular "bits" instead of large green leaves. I don't know what to call them instead of "bits", add they're not leaves, but more like short stems.

This next picture really shows the mass of growth coming from the main stem at the bottom of the plants. These little tubular bits don't turn into normal leaves!

I have a feeling there is a nutrient deficiency, add they plants have stopped growing fruit and instead lots of this "stemmy" growth. I've attached a few pics that I hope will clarify things.

For your information, I live in Brisbane, Australia. So we're in winter at the moment, which is quite mild but with occasional light showers.

Cheers Dave

Answer 1

This looks like a viral disease to me. The plant looks healthy in terms of color. Not a nutritional excess nor deficiency. I am almost sure this is a virus. Where did you get your soil? Do you compost?

What did you use for soil? Did you use any compost? Are these really eggplants? They look like tomatoes but barely. I guess they could be eggplant but boy howdy these plants are done DONE. I'd pull them and put them into trash bags and carefully. There is not a miracle around that could make these plants produce egg plants.

What did you use for fertilizer? If your fertilizer was higher in NITROGEN than the Phosphorous and Potassium, that would be one reason you are getting only vegetative growth. That might also be the reason your plants were susceptible to this disease, and I am thinking viral.

Pull them up carefully, slowly, include as much soil as possible and you are not going to be able to plant any of this family in that same soil for 2 years; includes eggplant, tomato, potato, peppers...Best to plant these plants in pots with POTTING SOIL sterilized soil that won't have virus or fungal or bacterial vectors.

Very unhappiness, David. This is how we learn to be gardeners. The hard way. What soil did you put in your raised beds? Any other amendments? What did you do to the soil beneath this bed before you put this on top?

The fact that one of your plants has always had these symptoms is a huge flag. All the other plants will end up with whatever this disease is.