{"product_id":"gboma-eggplant-leaf","title":"Gboma (Eggplant Leaf)","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePlease note: this listing is for \u003cspan style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"\u003eSEEDS\u003c\/span\u003e, not fresh eggplants!\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eGboma greens are the bitter and nutritious leaves of a West African cousin of the eggplant. They are eaten in West, Central, and East Africa, as well as Southeast Asia. Gboma is named for a village in Liberia.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eOur original seeds came to us from William Woys Weaver, with the Togolese name Gbognome (often spelled Gbogname). He received his seeds from a collector in Australia. Weaver featured this hard-to-find vegetable book \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/www.goodreads.com\/book\/show\/659157.100_Vegetables_and_Where_They_Came_From\"\u003e\u003cem\u003e100 Vegetables and Where They Came From\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis plant grows much like a short eggplant: 2-4' tall and bushy, with round green fruits that turn yellow when the seeds are ripe for saving. Harvest leaves as soon as they are large enough to cook with! You can also eat the stems and flowers, as well as occasional fruits.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWe found one delicious sounding sauce recipe in an article called \u003ca href=\"http:\/\/naturamoun.com\/feuille-gboma-injustement-appelee-epinard\/\"\u003e\"La Feuille De Gboma, Injustement Appelée « Épinard »\"\u003c\/a\u003e or \"The Gboma Leaf, Unjustly Called « Spinach »\". Another sauce recipe we found (also in French) features mutton, tomatoes, and egusi. See YouTube video \"\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=CAHkrCD-koM\"\u003eSauce Gboman (sauce épinards)\u003c\/a\u003e\".\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eRose Nzapa-Ayeke from \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/www.rescue.org\/announcement\/new-roots-community-farm-display\"\u003eNew Roots Community Farm\u003c\/a\u003e in the Bronx, New York is from Central African Republic, and she calls this vegetable simply \"Feuille d'Aubergine\" or Eggplant Leaf.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv style=\"border: 5px solid #ffeea2; padding: 20px; margin-bottom: 20px; background-color: #ffeea230;\"\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eHere is Rose's recipe:\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003col style=\"margin-left: 20px;\"\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eCut up leaves (like you would callaloo) and wash in a solution of cold water and baking soda; then rinse.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eBoil leaves in water and salt (to taste) until soft\/cooked.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eDrain and press out excess water.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eSauté with tomatoes etc. or cook with a peanut sauce; or you can add meat or fish. Rose likes to add pistachios from her home country to her recipe.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ol\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eDays to Maturity: \u003c\/strong\u003e70-90\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eSeeds per pack:\u003c\/strong\u003e 65\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eGermination rate:\u003c\/strong\u003e 85% on 02\/20\/2026\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003ePlanting \/ harvesting notes\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003eThese are heat-loving and seeds should be started indoors about 1\/4\" deep, about 8 weeks before the last frost. Transplant into garden well after the danger of frost. The growing characteristics are similar to most eggplants. The plants reach about 2-4 feet tall and should be planted 12-18 inches apart. They need full sun and fertile soil. Harvest leaves (and even stems and flowers!) when they look spinach-sized, or wait until they approach the size of a small collard green\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eSeed keeping notes\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eEggplants are generally self-pollinating, though we isolate different varieties of the same species by \u003cspan\u003e300 \u003c\/span\u003efeet, in hopes that flying insects will not cross pollinate them unexpectedly. That said, this eggplant species is different from those that produce edible fruits, and so hopefully it will not cross-pollinate easily. Eggplant seeds are ripe when the fruits have turned another color, in this case bright yellow. Cut the fruit, scrape out seeds (perhaps through a heavy-duty screen) into a vessel, add a little water (1-2\" is probably plenty) to your seeds and pulp to keep them from drying out, and allow them to ferment away from direct sunlight. Fermentation is not necessary with eggplants, but it makes seed cleaning a bit easier. Ideally, you will stir the concoction every day for 3-5 days. In the end, add more water to fill the vessel, stir one final time, and allow to settle. Pour off the floating material and then strain the seeds through a strainer. Sometimes, you will need to add more water and pour off the floating material several times until the water is clear and you can see the seeds sunken at the bottom. Squeeze dry the strained seeds in a towel, and then lay out to dry on a labeled screen or paper product in a ventilated place away from direct sunlight for a week or two.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Truelove Seeds Farm","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":32039725236359,"sku":"EGG-005","price":5.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/2406\/3467\/products\/05_Gboma_closer.jpg?v=1579188946","url":"https:\/\/trueloveseeds.sbs\/products\/gboma-eggplant-leaf","provider":"Truelove Seeds","version":"1.0","type":"link"}