The Roma tomato is the cook's favourite. Its egg-shaped fruit has thick, meaty walls, little juice and few seeds — making it ideal for tomato sauce, passata, sun-dried tomatoes and preserving. The plant is also easier to manage and more compact than many other tomato varieties.
Popular Roma Varieties
- San Marzano – The classic Italian DOP tomato from the Naples region. Elongated and red with an intense, sweet-tangy flavour. The foundation of authentic Neapolitan pizza sauce.
- Roma VF – Robust hybrid variety with good disease resistance. Early and productive — a reliable first choice.
- Amish Paste – Heirloom variety with slightly larger fruit and excellent flavour. Versatile — good both raw and cooked.
- Principe Borghese – Small, pear-shaped Italian heirloom, traditionally sun-dried. Intensely sweet flavour.
Care
Light
Roma tomatoes require full sun — at least 6–8 hours per day. Grow well in open ground, a greenhouse or on a sunny balcony.
Watering
Water evenly during growth and flowering. As the fruits begin to ripen, you can reduce watering slightly — it concentrates sugars and flavour in the fruit and reduces the risk of splitting.
Feeding
Apply tomato-specific fertiliser with a high potassium content from flowering to harvest. Do not over-apply nitrogen — it produces lush foliage but fewer fruits.
Staking
Determinate varieties (such as Roma VF) stop at a certain height and need only light support. Indeterminate varieties (such as Amish Paste) continue growing and require staking and side-shoot removal.
Soil
Well-draining, humus-rich soil with a pH of 6–6.8. Avoid waterlogged soil.
Common Problems
Blossom-end rot is common with uneven watering. Water consistently and consider adding calcium nitrate to the irrigation water.
Poor fruit set at high temperatures (above 32 °C) — shade the plant during a heat wave.
Preserving and Harvest
Harvest when the fruit is deep red throughout and firm. Roma tomatoes are excellent for making passata, whole canned tomatoes or sun-dried tomatoes. A large harvest can conveniently be frozen whole for winter use.
