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How to grow Big tomatoes in the UK

Proper salad and beefsteak tomatoes. They get heavy, so they need strong support from day one.

• DifficultyA bit more care
• WhereBeds or Pots
• Grows to180cm
• Spacing45cm
• Time to first pickabout 18 weeks

When to sow, plant and harvest big tomatoes

Dates are for central England. Sow about two weeks later in the north and Scotland, and up to two weeks earlier in the south and south west. Get the dates for your postcode.

Starting it indoors

1. Fill a small pot or tray with seed compost
2. Push the seeds in (0.5cm deep) - a couple per pot
3. Water gently, then put them on a bright windowsill
4. Keep the compost damp but not soggy - check it every day
5. When they have 2 proper leaves, give each seedling its own pot

Planting it out

1. Toughen them up ('hardening off'): put them outside in the day for a week, bring them in at night
2. Dig a hole a bit bigger than the pot
3. Tip the plant out gently, holding the leaves, not the stem
4. Pop it in the hole, firm the soil around it, and water well
5. Space the plants about 45cm apart in the row, with rows 60cm apart

Top tips for growing big tomatoes

• 'Moneymaker' and 'Ailsa Craig' are easy classics. 'Gardener's Delight' is a sweet cherry-sized one.
• Put the cane in BEFORE planting - pushing it in later can spear the roots.
• Heavy trusses of fruit snap stems: tie the stem AND the fruit trusses to the cane.

Looking after big tomatoes

• At planting: Water every day in hot weather, at the bottom of the plant - never let it dry out, or the fruit splits
• Week 1: Tie the stem to its cane every week with soft string, in a loose figure-of-8
• Week 1: Pinch out the side shoots that grow between the stem and a leaf - keep one main stem
• Week 5: Feed with tomato food once a week when the first flowers appear
• Week 7: As the fruit gets heavy, tie each truss (bunch of tomatoes) to the cane too
• Week 10: Pinch off the very top of the plant once it has 5-6 bunches of fruit, so it ripens those instead of growing taller

Soil and feeding

Rich compost, kept moist, in the warmest spot you have. Plant into good compost, then feed with tomato feed once a week as soon as the first flowers appear.

Pests and problems

• Blackfly & greenfly: tiny bugs that crowd the tips and suck the sap
• Blight: not an animal - a disease that browns the leaves in warm, wet summers

• Grow nasturtiums nearby - greenfly go for them instead
• In warm, wet weather watch for brown blotches (blight) - pick all the fruit and ripen it indoors

Harvesting and eating big tomatoes

Pick when fully coloured and slightly soft. In autumn, pick the green ones and ripen them indoors.

How to eat them: Thick slices in a sandwich with salt and pepper, or roast them into pasta sauce.

Storing big tomatoes

Keeps about 1 week.

• Keep in a bowl at room temperature - the fridge spoils the taste
• At the end of summer, ripen green ones in a drawer next to a banana

Freeze whole in a bag for cooking - the skins slip off when they thaw. Or cook into sauce and freeze.

Good varieties of big tomatoes

• Moneymaker: The classic, reliable red tomato.
• Ailsa Craig: An old favourite with great flavour.
• Crimson Crush: Big tomatoes that shrug off blight - best outdoors.
• Marmande: Big, ridged beefsteak tomatoes for slicing.

Companion planting

Grows well with

• Basil: classic partners - basil likes the same warm spot
• Nasturtiums: nasturtiums lure greenfly away from tomatoes
• Chives: chives may help keep greenfly away
• French marigolds: the smell keeps whitefly and greenfly away
• Calendula (pot marigold): brings hoverflies and bees
• Cosmos: brings hoverflies and lacewings, which eat greenfly

Keep away from

• New potatoes: they catch the same disease (blight) and pass it between them

Saving your own big tomatoes seed

From a fully ripe fruit, any time in late summer.

1. Pick your best, fully ripe tomato
2. Squeeze the seeds and juice into a jar with a splash of water
3. Leave it on the windowsill for 3 days - it goes mouldy on top, that's fine! It cleans the seeds
4. Tip into a sieve, rinse well, and spread the seeds on kitchen paper to dry for a week
5. Seeds from 'F1' varieties (it says on the packet) don't grow the same - save from ordinary ones.

Things to build for big tomatoes

• Tomato stakes and ties:
• Tomato string supports:
• Cold frame:

Where to buy big tomatoes seeds

Thompson & Morgan · Suttons · Amazon

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Big tomatoes questions

When should I sow big tomatoes in the UK?

In the UK, sow big tomatoes indoors from early March to early April. These dates suit central England; sow about two weeks later in the north and Scotland and up to two weeks earlier in the mild south and south west.

When do I plant out big tomatoes?

Plant big tomatoes out from late May to mid June, once the last frost has passed.

When can I pick big tomatoes?

Big tomatoes is ready from late July to early October. Pick when fully coloured and slightly soft. In autumn, pick the green ones and ripen them indoors.

How long do big tomatoes take to grow?

Roughly 18 weeks from sowing or planting until the first harvest.

Are big tomatoes easy to grow?

Big tomatoes are rated 'a bit more care' for beginners, and can be grown in the ground or a raised bed or in pots and containers.