Alicante
The most flexible old variety here, happy in a greenhouse or a sheltered outdoor bed.
Alicante is the variety to choose when you are not sure yet whether your plants will end up in a greenhouse or against a wall outside. It crops early, sets fruit reliably in cool conditions, and produces smooth medium tomatoes with more flavour than Moneymaker for the same easy-going temperament. It is open pollinated, so the seed can be saved.
Quick facts
- Botanical name
- Solanum lycopersicum
- Type
- Open pollinated
- Category
- Medium salad, cordon
- Difficulty
- Moderate
- Hardiness
- Tender, no frost tolerance
- In Ireland
- Much better under cover
- Germination
- 7 to 14 days at 18 to 25C
- Sowing depth
- 5mm
- Spacing
- 45cm apart, 75cm between rows
- Height
- 1.7m
- Position
- Full sun
- Containers
- Grows well in pots
- Sowing to harvest
- 16 to 20 weeks
- Harvest
- July to October
Sowing and harvest calendar for Alicante
Months shaded below are the reliable windows for Irish conditions.
Where to buy Alicante tomato seeds in Ireland
Irish suppliers that stock this, so postage stays domestic and seed arrives in time to sow. These are plain links, not paid placements.
Garden centres and mixed retailers
- Mr Middleton Irish Mail order arm of a long established Mary Street shop, carries the familiar named varieties the organic specialists skip. Visit Mr Middleton , Co. Dublin
- Johnstown Garden Centre Irish Stock runs out by midsummer, best ordered in spring Third generation family business near Naas with the widest branded range, though popular varieties sell out by midsummer. Visit Johnstown Garden Centre , Co. Kildare
Why it suits Ireland
Alicante is early. In a climate where September light drops away quickly, a variety that starts ripening in July rather than August effectively adds a month to the harvest.
It also sets fruit dependably when nights are cool, which is why it has stayed in catalogues since the 1960s while flashier varieties have come and gone. That combination of earliness and cool tolerance makes it one of the few older varieties genuinely worth growing outdoors here.
Growing notes
Grow as a cordon, one stem, side shoots removed weekly, supported by a cane or string.
Under cover allow six trusses; outdoors stop at four by mid-July so the plant finishes what it has started.
The fruit are smooth, around 100g, and resist greenback, the hard green shoulder that spoils some older varieties in strong sun. Feed with high potash once the first truss sets, and keep watering steady.
Common questions
Is Alicante better than Moneymaker?
For most Irish gardeners, yes. They are similar in habit and both are easy, but Alicante crops earlier, sets fruit more reliably in cool weather and has noticeably better flavour. Moneymaker's advantages are price and availability rather than performance.
Will Alicante ripen outdoors in Ireland?
In a sheltered, sunny garden, usually yes, because it is one of the earlier cordon varieties. Stop it at four trusses outdoors so the plant puts everything into fruit that can actually finish. It has no blight resistance, so a wet August can still end the crop early.
Does Alicante need side shooting?
Yes. It is a cordon or indeterminate variety, so it grows as a single stem and every shoot appearing in the joint between the main stem and a leaf must be pinched out while small. Check weekly. If you would rather not do this, grow a bush variety instead.
More tomatoes to consider
Gardener's Delight
Open pollinated / Cherry, cordon
The safest first tomato for an Irish garden, and still one of the best tasting.
Growing notes and stockistsSungold F1
AGMF1 hybrid / Cherry, cordon
The best tasting tomato most people will ever eat, and worth the hybrid price.
Growing notes and stockistsShirley F1
AGMF1 hybrid / Medium salad, cordon
The variety to grow if your greenhouse is unheated and your summer is unreliable.
Growing notes and stockistsMoneymaker
Open pollinated / Medium salad, cordon
Dependable and cheap, but there are better tasting varieties for the same effort.
Growing notes and stockists