Crops › Tomato (Beefsteak)
How to grow Tomato (Beefsteak)
in the UK
Sow March to April, plant out May to June, harvest July to October. About 85 days from seed to plate.
Beefsteak tomatoes, they're proper cracking, aren't they? Huge, meaty slices for your sandwiches or burgers. Growing these on the allotment is a bit of a challenge, to be honest, but the flavour is miles better than anything from the shops.
Sowing
Beefsteaks are a bit hard, like I say, because they need a long, warm season here in the UK. You'll want to sow indoors, definitely, from March through to April. Get your seeds into small pots or trays, about 1 cm deep, in some good seed compost. They need warmth to get going, ideally 20-25°C, so a heated propagator or a warm spot with a grow light is just the ticket. Don't rush 'em, give them a good start.
Growing on
Once your seedlings have their first proper leaves, carefully prick them out into individual 9cm pots. Keep them warm and in a sunny spot. Come late May, once all danger of frost is well and truly past – which for us up north is mid to late May, mind – start hardening them off. Plant them out into your greenhouse, or a very sheltered sunny spot on the plot, giving each plant about 60cm clearance. These get big, so good support from the off is crucial.
Looking after it
Beefsteaks are proper heavy feeders, so you'll need to keep them watered regularly, especially once the fruits start to set. A good tomato feed every week or two will make a big difference. Pinch out the side shoots as they appear, keeping to one main stem, and tie them into their support. Mulching around the base can help keep moisture in, too.
What goes wrong
The main enemies on the plot are blight, especially if the weather turns damp and humid. Keep an eye out for it and remove any affected leaves sharpish. Whitefly and aphids can be a nuisance in the greenhouse; a bit of sticky trap or a good spray with soapy water usually sorts them out. Just keep checking your plants, you know what I mean.
Harvest
You'll be picking these beauties from July right through to October, about 85 days after sowing, if you're lucky. They're ready when they're fully coloured and feel a bit soft to the touch. Pick them carefully, don't just yank them off the plant. Best eaten fresh, honestly, proper cracking sliced thick for your dinner.
I always put a good layer of well-rotted manure in the planting hole before my beefsteaks go in; it gives them a cracking start for all that growth.
Dates for your plot
Type the first half of your postcode and the plant-out advice shifts to your area's typical frost dates.
Varieties, and whether the club would grow them again
| Variety | Club verdict |
|---|---|
| Brandywine This is a classic, big pink heirloom, famous for its proper exceptional flavour. If you're after a tomato that tastes like tomatoes used to, this is the one for you. | No club votes yet |
| Costoluto Fiorentino An Italian ribbed beefsteak, proper meaty and good for slicing. It's got that lovely old-world charm and a cracking texture. | No club votes yet |
| Marmande This French heritage variety gives you irregular, lobed fruits. A bit quirky looking, but with a really good, traditional tomato taste. | No club votes yet 1 growing it |
| Big Beef F1 If you want big fruits with less faff, Big Beef F1 is a cracking choice. It's got good disease resistance, which is always a bonus on the plot. | No club votes yet |
| Supersteak F1 This one lives up to its name, producing huge fruits, sometimes up to 500g, proper giants. Definitely one for the greenhouse to get the best out of it. | No club votes yet |
| Country Taste Expect large, ribbed fruits with that proper old-fashioned tomato flavour. A solid choice if you're chasing that nostalgic taste. | No club votes yet |
| Cherokee Purple A really interesting dusky purple-pink beefsteak with a rich, complex flavour. Looks cracking on a plate and tastes even better. | No club votes yet |
| Black Krim This Russian heirloom gives you dark brownish-purple fruits, very distinctive looking. It's known for its rich, smoky taste, a real treat. | No club votes yet |
| Mortgage Lifter A famous large pink American heirloom with a great story behind its name. It's a reliable producer of proper tasty, big tomatoes. | No club votes yet |
| German Johnson This pink beefsteak stands out with its unusual potato-like leaves. It yields good sized fruits with a lovely, classic tomato flavour. | No club votes yet |
| Pineapple A stunning large bicolor yellow and red beefsteak, looking a bit like a pineapple when sliced. It's got a sweet, fruity taste that's proper delicious. | No club votes yet |
| Aunt Ruby's German Green Don't let the green colour fool you; these are ripe and ready to eat when they're soft. A large beefsteak with a wonderful, tangy-sweet flavour. | No club votes yet |
| Ananas Noire Known as 'Black Pineapple', this one has striking multicolored flesh when you cut it open. It offers a rich, smoky flavour with a hint of sweetness. | No club votes yet |
| Giant Syrian If you're after truly massive tomatoes, this huge pink Middle Eastern variety is a cracking choice. It's got a lovely flavour and serious slicing potential. | No club votes yet |
| Neves Azorean Red This Portuguese beefsteak is known for its very large, often irregular fruits. A proper meaty tomato with a fantastic, rich taste. | No club votes yet |
| Big Rainbow A beautiful large yellow beefsteak with stunning red streaks running through it. The flavour is sweet and fruity, a real visual and taste treat. | No club votes yet |
| Paul Robeson This dark red-brown Russian variety is named after the opera singer and is highly regarded. It boasts a complex, smoky-sweet flavour that's just proper good. | No club votes yet |
| Pruden's Purple A large pink-purple beefsteak that's a bit earlier to ripen than some other heirlooms. It has a fantastic, intense flavour, making it a popular choice. | No club votes yet |
| Striped German This one's a stunner, with yellow skin and red marbling inside, proper eye-catching. The flavour is sweet and mild, a bit fruity, cracking for salads. | No club votes yet |
| Omar's Lebanese Another cracking large pink Middle Eastern variety, known for its consistent heavy yields. It's got a lovely, balanced flavour that's great for all uses. | No club votes yet |
| Kellogg's Breakfast Famous for its large, bright orange fruits and fantastic flavour. Many reckon this is one of the best tasting orange beefsteaks you can grow. | No club votes yet |
| Hillbilly This one gives you beautiful yellow-orange fruits with red streaks, like a sunset. It's got a sweet, fruity flavour, a real joy to grow. | No club votes yet |
| Box Car Willie A reliable producer of large, smooth red beefsteaks with a good, classic flavour. It's a solid, dependable choice for the plot. | No club votes yet |
| Giant Belgium True to its name, this is a very large pink beefsteak, proper massive, sometimes up to 1 kg. It's got a lovely, sweet flavour and is great for slicing. | No club votes yet |
Votes are members rating varieties in their Seed Tin, one vote per gardener. Tap a variety for the full page and where to buy.
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Cook the harvest
Thick slices of beefsteak tomato are charred on a screaming-hot griddle until caramelised and smoky, then laid over cool, whipped feta and showered with crunchy dukkah and a drizzle of honey. This is a dish that showcases what a peak-season beefsteak tomato can do with minimal interference — the contrast of hot, jammy tomato against cold, salty cheese is one of summer's best combinations. It works equally well as a generous starter, a vegetarian main with flatbread, or an impressive side to grilled lamb.
18 min · easyThick wedges of beefsteak tomato collapse into a rich, gently spiced coconut broth with flaky white fish, making a curry that tastes deeply considered but comes together in under thirty minutes. The tomatoes do the heavy lifting here — their juices meld with coconut milk to form a sauce you will want to mop up with flatbread. A weeknight staple for late summer when the tomatoes are at their most flavourful.
28 min · easyThick-cut beefsteak tomatoes dressed in a punchy mix of gochujang, sesame oil, soy sauce and rice vinegar — this is a side dish that can hold its own on the table. The tomatoes are left in generous slabs so they soak up the dressing without going mushy, and the whole thing comes together in under fifteen minutes. It is bold, a little spicy and unexpectedly addictive alongside grilled meat or rice.
12 min · easyWhen beefsteak tomatoes and peaches are both at their peak in late summer, this salad is one of the best things you can put on a table. Thick slabs of tomato sit alongside ripe peach wedges, torn burrata, and crunchy toasted hazelnuts, dressed simply with a white balsamic and shallot vinaigrette. It needs nothing else — just good bread to catch the juices.
20 min · easyWatch for, and grow alongside
Companions: basil, marigold
Questions people ask
When do you sow Tomato (Beefsteak) in the UK?
Sow Tomato (Beefsteak) from March to April. Plant out May to June, after the last frost.
How long does Tomato (Beefsteak) take from sowing to harvest?
Roughly 85 days, with the harvest July to October.
Which Tomato (Beefsteak) varieties do gardeners grow again?
Club members rate every variety they grow. This page shows the grow-again votes for Brandywine, Costoluto Fiorentino, Marmande, Big Beef F1 and more.
Track your Tomato (Beefsteak) from packet to plate
Sowing reminders and harvest forecasts for your own frost dates, the Seed Tin, Scan Centre for any label or packet, and the Potty Mouth Garden Club. Free to start.
Allotment keeper in the North East of England, the voice behind the Tony C Smith YouTube channel, and the gardener who built GrowMore CookMore. Club numbers on this page update as members log their plots. Last updated 3 September 2026.