🍅 Quick take: Siberian Panther is a striking indeterminate anthocyanin slicer circulating through Baltic and Eastern European seed savers. Reaching 5-5.5 ft (1.5-1.7 m), it produces glossy, high-lacquer pinkish-red fruits with ink-purple shoulders weighing up to 9 oz (250 g). Known for throwing gigantic first clusters of up to 23 fruits, growers often debate its fruity sweetness directly against Sgt. Pepper’s. Full summary ↓
Growers’ Notes and Photos (USDA Zone 4 Experience)
Siberian Panther – sourced my seed from Valdis Pulins.
Valdis’s description: “Mid-season variety. At full maturity, the fruit are deep pink-red with dark purple shoulders, weighing up to 9 oz (250 g). Outstanding flavor, sweet with a rich fruity undertone. Plant height around 5.3 ft (1.6 m).”
I agree with Valdis’s notes 100%.
Valdis’s description: “Mid-season variety. At full maturity, the fruit are deep pink-red with dark purple shoulders, weighing up to 9 oz (250 g). Outstanding flavor, sweet with a rich fruity undertone. Plant height around 5.3 ft (1.6 m).”
I agree with Valdis’s notes 100%.
This was a terrible season for tomatoes up here, so it’s tough to give a fair verdict on flavor. Because of the crummy weather, this variety felt very similar to Sgt. Pepper’s and Pink Siberian Tiger. Out of that trio, Sgt. Pepper’s impressed me more this year.
In my garden, Siberian Panther tasted noticeably better than Sgt. Pepper’s. Both plants were grown right next to each other in full sun.
Edited October 3, 2019 by Khrizantema57
Edited October 3, 2019 by Khrizantema57
Seed sourced from V. Pulins. Ripened slightly later than my earliest antho varieties. The vine topped out around 5 ft (150 cm).
All 3 of my plants threw a monstrous first cluster carrying up to 23 fruit! The clusters further up the stem settled down to a normal 2 to 3 fruit each. The skin has a beautiful, high-gloss lacquered finish. Trained mine to 2 and 3 leaders.
All 3 of my plants threw a monstrous first cluster carrying up to 23 fruit! The clusters further up the stem settled down to a normal 2 to 3 fruit each. The skin has a beautiful, high-gloss lacquered finish. Trained mine to 2 and 3 leaders.
Quick Facts: Variety Summary
- 🌿 Growth Habit: Moderate indeterminate vine reaching 5-5.3 ft (1.5-1.6 m). Handles 2 to 3 leaders cleanly, displaying high-vigor branching early in the season.
- 🍅 Fruit Profile: Round-to-oblate medium slicers weighing up to 9 oz (250 g). Features smooth, high-gloss lacquered skins with rich raspberry-pink-red bodies and dark purple-black anthocyanin shoulders.
- 📈 Truss Dynamics: Known for producing an oversized king truss at the bottom of the plant that can set up to 23 fruits at once, followed by standard 2-3 fruit clusters on upper nodes.
- 👅 Flavor Profile: Sweet and rich with a distinct tropical fruity finish when given full direct sun. In head-to-head garden trials, growers rate its sweetness on par with or superior to Sgt. Pepper’s.
- 🌎 Circulation: Maintained and distributed predominantly by Baltic heirloom preservationists (notably Latvian seed collector Valdis Pulins).
🍅 Have you grown Siberian Panther? Did your vines throw a mega-cluster on the first truss, and how did it rank against Sgt. Pepper’s in your patch? Drop your review below!
