Heirloom Tomato Varieties & Reviews | Tomat-Pomidor
Honest reviews of global tomato varieties from a 15-year-old growers community.
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Vidimo-Nevidimo (Countless) 🌍 Origin: A commercial variety from Siberian breeders. The Russian name “Vidimo-Nevidimo” translates to “Countless” or “Invisible Amount,” perfectly describing its incredibly heavy fruit set. 🌿 Plant Habit: Determinate (bush). Very compact and short-vined, usually topping out around 1.6-3 feet (0.5-1 m). It’s perfect for open ground and outdoor … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Kalman’s Hungarian Pink 🌍 Origin: A famous family heirloom originally from Hungary, introduced to the US heirloom community by Kalman Lajvort (Edison, NJ). It is highly regarded worldwide and was famously used by Polish breeder Anna Jankowski (Kozula) to create her highly sought-after K10 cross. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall). A … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Mt. Vesuvius (Piennolo del Vesuvio) 🌍 Origin & History: This is a legendary Italian heirloom storage tomato (Pomodorino del Piennolo del Vesuvio). Traditionally grown on the slopes of Mount Vesuvius in Italy, they are famous for being harvested on the vine, tied into large bunches (piennolo), and hung from ceilings to … Read more
📌 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