Plant Eggplant in Zone 7b

Zone 7b averages 212 frost-free days, running from a last spring frost around April 3 to a first fall frost around November 1. Eggplant needs roughly 85 days from planting out to first harvest, so it uses about 40 percent of that window. Eggplant is a tender crop, which is what decides where in the window it belongs.

Because eggplant needs a head start, sow seed indoors around Feb 6, about 8 weeks ahead of the Zone 7b last frost. Transplants go out around Apr 17. Starting earlier than that in Zone 7b usually backfires: plants outgrow their cells and stall when they finally hit cold soil. At 85 days to harvest, a 212-day Zone 7b season has room for about 2 sowings, so stagger them rather than planting everything at once.

Yes. Sow eggplant by July 11 in Zone 7b. That is 113 days before the average first frost, which covers the 85 days to maturity plus about two weeks for the slower growth that comes with shortening days, plus a two week margin because frost kills eggplant outright.

Eggplant needs a long warm run to finish, so a second planting is realistic only in zone 9 and warmer.