Heirloom Tomato Varieties & Reviews | Tomat-Pomidor
Honest reviews of global tomato varieties from a 15-year-old growers community.
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Vinnaya Bukhta (Wine Cove) 🌍 Origin: Popular dark tomato circulating in the Russian heirloom community. The name translates literally to “Wine Cove” (or Wine Bay). Grower’s Note: While some speculate this might have originated from a mistranslation of Wine Jug (Vinnyi Kuvshin), “Wine Cove” is traded as a distinct, highly stable … Read more
📌 Quick Summary: Varvara 🌍 Origin: A Russian commercial release from the GISOK-AGRO seed company. Entered into the Russian State Register in 2001. 🌱 Plant Habit: An indeterminate vine growing 5.2–6 ft (1.6-1.8m) tall. It features classic “wispy” or sparse foliage, allowing lots of light to reach the fruit. Standard Regular Leaf (RL). 🍅 Fruit … Read more
📌 Quick Summary: Cheerful Hondurans 🌍 Origin: A commercial Russian variety from the famous SibSad (Siberian Garden) seed company, bearing a rather hilarious name. 🌱 Plant Habit: A highly productive indeterminate vine that requires staking and regular pruning. 🍅 Fruit & Yield: Produces firm, bright red, pear-shaped tomatoes weighing about 3.5 to 5.5 oz (100-150g). … Read more
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📌 Quick Summary: Creamsicle Grape 🌍 Origin: A relatively new US release, bred by Brad Gates at Wild Boar Farms. 🌱 Plant Habit: A vigorous, tall-growing indeterminate vine that can easily reach over 6.5 ft (2.0 m) in height. Highly productive and known for excellent fruit set. 🍅 Fruit & Yield: Produces elongated “grape” or … Read more
📌 Quick Summary: Cheerful or Jolly Gnome (Veselyi Gnom) 🌍 Origin: Bred by the well-known Russian tomato breeder L.A. Myazina. 🌱 Plant Habit: A compact, tree-type determinate (about 16-28 inches / 40-70 cm tall). It has thick, sturdy stems and broad rugose leaves. It does not require pruning (suckering) and is highly recommended for container/patio … Read more
📌 Quick Summary: Volgograd Early 323 🌍 Origin: A classic, historic commercial variety released in 1973 by the Volgograd Experimental Station of the VIR (Vavilov Institute). It is a cross between a local Russian variety and the American Bush Beefsteak. 🌱 Plant Habit: An extremely compact determinate (almost micro-dwarf in scale). The bushy, heavily branched … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Bolshoy Rozovyi Vernisazh (Large Pink Vernisage) 🌍 Origin: Part of the famous “Vernisage” series created by Ukrainian breeder Ruslan Dukhov. The name translates to “Large Pink Vernisage”. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate, mid-early maturity. It is a sprawling, sturdy, and highly vigorous plant. It is very forgiving—you can prune it to 2 … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Banzai 🌍 Origin: A Russian variety sold commercially by companies like Gavrish, though some growers have been saving their own family strains of this tomato since the 1990s. 🌿 Plant Habit: The commercial packet lists it as a 5 ft (1.5 m) plant, but growers consistently report it behaves as a … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Brothers 🌍 Origin: An open-pollinated variety known simply as “Brothers”. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate, mid-season maturity. It is incredibly rugged and low-maintenance, thriving even when grown outdoors in open ground. It is an extremely reliable setter. 🍅 Fruit Characteristics: Small, cocktail-sized fruits that ripen to a pinkish-red, occasionally showing very faint … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Boets (Buyan) Red 🌍 Origin: A super-reliable Siberian commercial variety. In the official registry, it is named “Boets” (Fighter), but it is widely sold by the Siberian Garden seed company under the name “Buyan” (Brawler). 🌿 Plant Habit: A compact, tree-type determinate (micro-dwarf) topping out at just 16–19 inches (42–48 cm). … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Bityug F1 🌍 Origin: A commercial F1 hybrid bred by the Russian seed company Gavrish. It is officially registered for homesteads and small farms. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate, but generally well-behaved and medium-tall. Bred specifically for growing under plastic (high tunnels/greenhouses). It boasts a fantastic disease resistance package, including resistance to … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Baloven Sudby (Fortune’s Favorite) 🌍 Origin: A commercial variety from the Russian seed company Siberian Garden (Sib-Sad). The name translates to “Fortune’s Favorite” or “Darling of Fate”. 🌿 Plant Habit: The seed packet lists it as an early determinate growing to 28–31 inches (70–80 cm). However, growers note it behaves more … Read more