Growers’ Notes and Photos (USDA Zones 3-6 Experience)
Description from the seed packet: A new mid-season, large-fruited variety with giant fruits weighing up to 28 oz (800 g). The plant grows 3.6-6 ft (1.1-1.8 m) tall, suitable for outdoors and hoop houses. The main stem sets 5-6 trusses with 4-5 fruits each. The fruits are heart-shaped, bright red, dense, not watery, and absolutely fantastic for salads and winter canning.
Valichka, Marina, is this the very fruit (or even two) that set and grew underground that one time, remember?
Sweet wrote:
Marina, is this the very fruit (or even two) that set and grew underground that one time, remember?
Yes Svetlana, these beauties somehow managed to grow right in the dirt. It didn’t quite reach the claimed 28 oz (800 g) for me. Probably needed a better spot, I had it growing under a tree.
It was my absolute favorite in 2013, but in 2014 it was a dud (like many others that year). Very delicious, and great sliced into canning jars too.
Grew Kanary a couple of years ago. The vine was vigorous, heavily foliated, with huge leaves. The fruits were medium and small. The flavor didn’t really impress me, didn’t live up to my expectations. Although the variety is completely low-maintenance, never gets sick, and holds up incredibly well to crazy temp swings.
Planted it this year. One of the vines turned out to be an off-type, but it’s sweet and delicious so I saved seeds from it, it’s great for canning. The round one is obviously the real Kanary.
Lyubov wrote:
Planted it this year. One of the vines turned out to be an off-type, but it’s sweet and delicious so I saved seeds from it, it’s great for canning. The round one is obviously the real Kanary.
Lyubov, were all the tomatoes on the vine round? It’s supposed to be an oxheart.
Edited August 18, 2015 by Drosera
Valentina 54 wrote:
Lyubov, were all the tomatoes on the vine round? It’s supposed to be an oxheart.
I grew 2 vines, one gave me these paste types, the other gave round ones. Neither looks like the photo on the packet. Semena Altaya seeds really surprised me.
I really loved this variety. Delicious, early, heavy yielder, no disease issues. The plant got over 6.5 ft (2 m) tall. Sets meaty fruits without dropping any blossoms right up until the frost.
Does what grew for me look like Kanary? I thought it was, looking at the store packets online, but then I read it’s supposed to be a massive slicer and I started doubting. Mine aren’t cherries obviously, but you couldn’t call them huge either, maybe 9-10.5 oz (250-300 g) at their largest.
Nadine wrote:
Does what grew for me look like Kanary? I thought it was, looking at the store packets online, but then I read it’s supposed to be a massive slicer and I started doubting. Mine aren’t cherries obviously, but you couldn’t call them huge either, maybe 9-10.5 oz (250-300 g) at their largest.
Well, maybe if you pruned some flowers to thin out the fruit on the vine, they would have grown bigger. I grew it way back around 2007-2008, and mine were about exactly that size, 7-9 oz (200-250 g).
I got my Kanary seeds from Angelina. Loved the variety. Pink, heart-shaped, early, massive yields, huge fruits, set every truss without fails. The fruits grow 3-4 per cluster, weighing about 7-21 oz (200-600 g).
But the name of the variety is really confusing, since there are totally different tomatoes circulating under the exact same name. I wonder where all these different versions came from.
I did a little digging just out of curiosity. Most people reference Sibsad (Siberian Garden), their description matches Semena Altaya:
“New mid-season large-fruited highly productive variety with giant fruits up to 28 oz (800 g). Plant height 3.6-6 ft (1.1-1.8 m). Fruits are round-heart shaped, bright red, large, meaty, dense, not watery, fantastic for salads and canning.”
Agros seed company says:
“Very productive mid-late variety of unlimited growth. Bright red, very large (up to 17.5 oz / 500 g) round fruits characterized by excellent marketability and outstanding flavor. KANARY is good for fresh eating and canning.”
Demetra says:
“Kanary tomato is included in the National Seed Registry of the Russian Federation for outdoor and film cover growing in home gardens. Requires staking and pruning. Salad type. Mid-season. Indeterminate plant. Medium green leaf. Intermediate inflorescence. Jointed stem. Fruit is round, smooth, dense. Unripe fruit is green, ripe is red. 6-10 locules. Fruit weight 5.7-6.4 oz (163-182 g). Excellent taste.”
And the actual National Seed Registry matches Demetra exactly:
Year included in registry: 2007. Patent end date: 2009. Originator: Agros firm.
Basically, whoever wants to name their tomato Kanary, just slaps the name on it.
I wonder who sells the seeds for the pink oxheart version?
Alisa wrote:
Well, maybe if you pruned some flowers to thin out the fruit on the vine, they would have grown bigger. I grew it way back around 2007-2008, and mine were about exactly that size, 7-9 oz (200-250 g).
Irina, they self-regulate out here. 🙂 As soon as the heat hits (sometimes as early as April), they drop blossoms or even whole trusses. So I didn’t even think about thinning them, by the time I noticed, they were already big. Plus I just wanted to see what would grow naturally.
Irina wrote:
I got my Kanary seeds from Angelina. Loved the variety. Pink, heart-shaped, early, massive yields, huge fruits, set every truss without fails. The fruits grow 3-4 per cluster, weighing about 7-21 oz (200-600 g).
But the name of the variety is really confusing, since there are totally different tomatoes circulating under the exact same name. I wonder where all these different versions came from.
I should ask Angelina where she got her seeds. Just out of curiosity.
I’m not an expert, but since the patent expired in 2009, anyone can use the name, right? There’s no law against it? Or am I misunderstanding?
I wish they would just call them Pink Heart Kanary and Red Heart Kanary. The strain from Angelina is incredibly good. Especially for folks with short summers, since it’s early and pumps out the yield. Nadezhda, I see your plant is loaded with fruit too. So both versions are absolute keepers. They just need to specify red or pink on the labels.
Exactly my point, both strains are excellent! If they were duds, we wouldn’t even be having this problem! 😆
Full Summary: Plant, Yield, Taste and The Seed Mystery
- 🌿 Plant: Vigorous indeterminate vines growing 3.6 to over 6.5 ft (1.1-2 m) tall depending on the strain. Known for dense, heavy foliage and extreme resilience to temperature swings. Sets fruit reliably in both heat and cold.
- 📈 Yield: Exceptionally high across all strains. Growers report vines loaded with fruit clusters right up until the frost.
- 🍅 The Two Strains (The Mystery): The name “Kanary” suffers from an expired patent, leading to multiple commercial versions.
- The “Official” Strain: Originally registered by Agros in 2007. A red, round-to-heart-shaped tomato weighing 6-18 oz (160-500 g).
- The “Angelina” Strain: A wildly popular pink oxheart passed around by seed savers, capable of producing massive 21 oz (600 g) fruits.
- 👅 Taste: Sweet, meaty, and dense (not watery). Great for fresh slicing, but also highly recommended by forum users for canning.
- 🌎 Who Reviewed It: Growers across Russia, ranging from the short, cold summers of Sverdlovsk (Zone 3) to the scorching heat of Volgograd (Zone 6b). Both red and pink strains perform brilliantly in all extremes.
