How to grow Tomato (Roma VF)

Solanum lycopersicum

🥕 Vegetable 🌱 Grown each year

Tomato Roma VF produces fleshy, juicy, almost seedless fruits with a deliciously different flavour, making it an excellent variety for eating fresh. This semi-bush, determinate variety is very heavy medium-late cropping and has good resistance to verticillium and fusarium wilt. Roma is a specially bred plum tomato ideal for preserving, making ketchup, tomato juice, and soups. Being a determinate (bush) variety, it will not need pinching out but may require staking due to its heavy crop. Can be grown successfully in a greenhouse or outdoors.

At a glance: Sow mid January to mid April, harvest from mid July.

When to sow, plant and harvest

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec

Sow indoors

Plant

Flowers

Harvest

Timed for a typical UK garden (last frost mid-April). The app uses your own town's frost dates.

Growing Tomato (Roma VF): what it needs

Light: Full sun · 8+ hours a day
Watering: Daily
Soil: Rich, fertile, well-draining · pH 6.0–6.8
Spacing: 45cm apart
In pots: Grows well in containers
Feeding: Feed with a high potassium tomato fertiliser once a week when fruit has begun to set.
Harvest: About 75 days from sowing
Hardiness: USDA zones 3–10
Difficulty: Intermediate

Step by step

Mid January – mid April · 13 weeks before the last spring frost
Sow Seeds Indoors
Sow seeds thinly in seed trays or 2-3 seeds in small pots, covering lightly with compost. Firm gently and water carefully. Keep in a heated greenhouse/propagator at 15-20°C.
6–14 days after “Sow Seeds Indoors” · Late January
Check Germination
Seedlings should emerge in 6-14 days. Ensure consistent warmth and moisture.
21 days after “Check Germination” · Mid February
Pot Up Seedlings
When seedlings are about 10cm tall, transplant them into larger individual pots to allow for further growth.
Early May · 3 weeks after the last spring frost
Harden Off Plants
Gradually acclimatise plants to outdoor conditions over 3-4 days before final planting. Start with a few hours outside in a sheltered spot, increasing exposure daily.
Mid May – mid July · 4 weeks after the last spring frost
Transplant Outdoors
Plant out from May to June, ensuring all risk of frost has passed. Space plants 45cm apart. Plant deeply, to a depth of 0.5cm below the seed leaves, for a sturdy plant.
14 days after “Transplant Outdoors” · Late May
Add Staking and Support
As Roma VF is a semi-bush variety that produces heavy crops, it will require staking or caging to support the plants and prevent stems from breaking.
21 days after “Add Staking and Support” · Mid June
Start Weekly Feeding
Once the fruit has begun to set, start feeding plants weekly with a high potassium tomato fertiliser to encourage fruit development.
30–90 days after “Start Weekly Feeding” · Mid July – mid September
Harvest Roma Tomatoes
Pick fruits when they are fully red and firm. Harvest regularly from June to September to encourage more production.