Heirloom Tomato Varieties & Reviews | Tomat-Pomidor
Honest reviews of global tomato varieties from a 15-year-old growers community.
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Italianskie (Italian) 🌍 Origin: Sourced from various Russian seed collectors (like Petrov and Monakhova). Often compared to or suspected to be a strain of Super Italian Paste. 🌿 Plant Habit: Vigorous indeterminate (tall) vines. Growers recommend pruning to 2 or 3 main leaders. Highly resistant to Late Blight and Blossom End … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Ilona 🌍 Origin: A reliable variety named “Ilona”. 🌿 Plant Habit: Vigorous vines that reach around 5 feet (1.5 m) when grown outdoors. Known to be a very heavy yielder. 🍅 Fruit Characteristics: Classic red, perfectly round tomatoes. They are on the smaller mid-size spectrum, averaging about 3 to 4 oz … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Izyuminka 🌍 Origin: Сommercial variety distributed by companies like Aelita. The name translates literally to “Little Raisin,” but in Russian, it is an idiom meaning “Zest” or “Highlight.” 🌿 Plant Habit: Determinate (bush). It stays very compact, reaching only about 2 feet (50-60 cm) tall. Excellent choice for open ground or … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Ispanskiy Temno-Malinovyi (Spanish Dark Raspberry) 🌍 Origin: A popular commercial and collectible variety in Russia. The name translates to “Spanish Dark Raspberry”. Sourced through collectors like V.V. Redko and commercial vendors like Uralskiy Dachnik. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall/vine) and extremely vigorous. Growers highly recommend pruning it to 3 or 4 … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Izumrudnaya Grusha (Emerald Pear) 🌍 Origin: A Russian heirloom whose name translates to “Emerald Pear”. A very popular Green-When-Ripe (GWR) variety. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall). Typically grows to 6.5 – 10 feet (2-3 m). The foliage is somewhat light and well-behaved, not overly bushy, but also not the weeping “wispy” … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Iskry Plameni (Sparks of Flame) 🌍 Origin: An Eastern European heirloom variety. The name translates beautifully to “Sparks of Flame”, which perfectly describes its striking red and yellow striped appearance. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall), but generally has a compact footprint with slender vines. Grows to about 5 feet (1.5 m) … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Iyunskiy (June) 🌍 Origin: A legendary ultra-early Russian community heirloom. Note: There is a commercial variety sold by Sedek with the same name, but this thread specifically documents the famous “Forum Iyunskiy” circulated by the grower Sweet from St. Petersburg. 🌿 Plant Habit: Ultra-early dwarf (determinate). A stout, sturdy, compact little … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): L’Espagnol Lefebvres (Lefebvre’s Spanish) 🌍 Origin: Originally an heirloom from Spain, likely introduced to the broader seed saver community through France or Quebec given the French name. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indet. Mid-season. A tall but slender plant that sets fruit very reliably even in cold, wet summers. Needs adequate potassium to … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Toffee (Iriska) 🌍 Origin: A natural cross between Amarillo Cherry and Everett’s Rusty Oxheart, discovered and stabilized by breeder Bill Jefferson. Also known in the Russian community under its translated name, Iriska. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indet. A highly productive plant that can be pruned to 2 or 3 stems. Typically reaches … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Intuition F1 (Intuitsiya F1) 🌍 Origin: A commercial Russian F1 hybrid, primarily released by the seed company Gavrish. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indet. An incredibly vigorous, disease-resistant plant. It sets fruit reliably in any weather (hot or cold) and keeps producing right up until the first hard frost. Growers highly recommend pruning … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Tony’s Italian Purple 🌍 Origin: Heirloom originating from Italy. Known for its dark color and ability to pump out multiple harvests. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indet. A very slender, wispy plant with slightly curled leaves. Because it doesn’t have a massive footprint, it is perfect for tight spacing or tucking right up … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Ibiza Elena’s Plum 🌍 Origin: A specific plum-shaped selection/variation of the known Ibiza variety, stabilized and circulated by a Russian grower named Elena. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indet. A highly productive workhorse with a long fruiting season. Growers recommend running it as a 3-stemmer for optimal yields. 🍅 Fruit Characteristics: Beautiful plum/paste … Read more