Crop type: Tomatoes
Solanum lycopersicum ‘Gigantomo’
Common name: Tomato ‘Gigantomo’
Crop slug: tomatoes
This Allotment Pro editorial draft summarises the cited RHS cultivar profile.RHS cultivar profile
1 - Overview
‘Gigantomo’, also known as ‘Steakhouse’, is a cordon beefsteak tomato best grown in a greenhouse or polytunnel. It produces some of the largest tomatoes available to home growers, with individual fruits weighing up to 1.3kg. Strong support is essential for this exceptional crop.
2 - Size
- Ultimate height
- 1.5–2.5 metres
- Ultimate spread
- 0.5–1 metre
- Time to ultimate size
- 1 year
The tall columnar cordon and 1.3kg fruit require a robust structure.
3 - Growing conditions
- Suitable soils
- Clay, loam or sand
- Moisture
- Moist but well drained
- Soil pH
- Acid or neutral
Keep the growing medium evenly moist as the giant fruits swell.
4 - Position and hardiness
- Light
- Full sun
- Aspect
- South- or west-facing
- Exposure
- Sheltered
- Hardiness
- H1c — suitable outside only during frost-free summer conditions above approximately 5–10°C
A greenhouse or polytunnel gives the warmth and shelter this giant-fruited cultivar needs.
5 - Colour and seasonal interest
| Season | Flowers | Foliage | Fruit |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | Yellow | Green | — |
| Summer | Yellow | Green | Red giant beefsteaks |
Exceptional fruit scale, rather than an unusual colour, is the defining trait.
6 - Botanical details
- Family
- Solanaceae
- Native to Great Britain and Ireland
- No
- Foliage
- Evergreen on the profile; grown as an annual
- Habit
- Columnar and upright
- Name status
- Accepted
Genus
Solanum includes annual, perennial, shrubby and climbing plants with lobed foliage, five-lobed flowers and fleshy fruit.
7 - How to grow
Cultivation
Start seed indoors or in a heated greenhouse. Grow on under protected full sun after frost, tie the cordon to a very strong support and brace heavy fruit trusses.
Propagation
Propagate by seed indoors.
Pruning
Remove side-shoots and stop the leader after seven trusses under cover or four outdoors.
Pests
Glasshouse whitefly and tomato moth may attack.
Diseases
Rare honey fungus, blossom-end rot, magnesium deficiency, tomato spotted wilt virus and grey mould under glass are listed.