‘Baghdad Market 1948’ Eggplant

Solanum melongena

Origin: Baghdad, Iraq

Improvement status: Landrace

Seeds per packet: ~30

Germination tested 10/2024: 67%

Life cycle: Annual

Baghdad Market 1948′ is the name we’ve given to this tasty landrace eggplant collected by USDA agronomist and “plant explorer” Jack Harlan in 1948. Fruits are slender with light striping and come in colors ranging from pale lavendar to darker violet. Our friend Annabel Rabiyah of the Iraqi Seed Collective tells us that this eggplant looks like a classic “makdous”-type eggplant, typically stuffed with meat, vegetables, and/or grains, especially in Baghdadi cuisine. We only tasted one fruit ourselves, and it was tender and delicious. This is a productive, vigorous eggplant.

Our seed was grown by our friends Corrie and Jose Spellman-Lopez in Vineland, NJ. 25% of the proceeds of these seeds will be donated to the Iraqi Seed Collective to support their important work preserving Iraqi seeds, and 25% will go to Corrie and Jose as the growers.

GROWING TIPS: Grow as any other eggplant, starting seeds indoors a few weeks before last frost to achieve maximum production. Large plants may need staking or trellising, particularly once laden down with fruit!