Egg-plant

Egg-plant (Solanum melongena), a species of Solanaceæ, a native of Northern Africa, whose plant grows to a height of two feet; in Britain it is a greenhouse annual. The egg-like fruit known as Egg-apple, Aubergine, &c., is a favourite article of food in the East Indies, and has thence been introduced to most warm countries. It varies in size from that of a hen's egg to that of a swan's egg, or larger, in colour from white or yellow to violet. Egg-plants are much grown in the United States, where 'Jew's-apple' is one of the names for the fruit.