Heirloom Tomato Varieties & Reviews | Tomat-Pomidor
Honest reviews of global tomato varieties from a 15-year-old growers community.
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Green Sausage 🌍 Origin: A famous novelty variety bred by the legendary American tomato breeder Tom Wagner (Tater Mater Seeds). 🌿 Plant Habit: A strict determinate. The plants are extremely short and bushy with a sprawling, almost trailing habit. They feature very distinct, finely cut, wispy “carrot-like” foliage. Excellent for outdoor … Read more
Quick Summary of Zolotaya Klusha 📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Zolotaya Klusha 🌍 Origin: A commercial Siberian variety developed by the SibSad (Siberian Garden) seed company. The name translates roughly to “Golden Broody Hen”. 🌿 Plant Habit: A very compact, sturdy determinate bush (dwarf type). It rarely exceeds 2 ft (60 cm) in height, making it … Read more
Quick Summary of Zagadka (The Riddle) 📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Zagadka 🌍 Origin: A classic ultra-early commercial Russian variety. The name translates to “The Riddle” or “Enigma”. 🌿 Plant Habit: Determinate (bush). Very compact, growing only 12-16 inches (30-40 cm) tall. It does not require pruning or staking; you can just let it sprawl in … Read more
Quick Summary of Zolotoy Dozhd (Golden Rain) 📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Zolotoy Dozhd 🌍 Origin: A legendary Russian heirloom heavily discussed in the gardening community. Important: There is a massive mix-up in the commercial seed market. Commercial packets (from companies like Poisk or SeDeK) often contain small pear-shaped cherries. The true forum heirloom (traced back … Read more
Quick Summary of Zlatovlaska (Goldilocks) 📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Zlatovlaska (Goldilocks) 🌍 Origin: A Russian commercial cherry variety introduced by the “Poisk” seed company. It is officially registered for both open field and greenhouse cultivation. The name translates to “Goldilocks”. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate. The foliage is medium-sized, light green, and somewhat wispy (delicate). Outdoors, … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Zheltye Dlinnye (Yellow Long) 🌍 Origin: A true, unnamed family heirloom from Russia. It has been passed down and saved by the thread author’s family since her great-grandmother’s time. The name “Yellow Long” is simply a working title. 🌿 Plant Habit: Semi-determinate to indeterminate. Reaches about 5.2 ft (160 cm) in … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Zhiraf (Giraffe) 🌍 Origin: A well-known commercial variety bred specifically for extreme long-term winter storage. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall) and very late-ripening (130-140 days). Highly resistant to Tobacco Mosaic Virus (TMV) and leaf mold. 🍅 Fruit Characteristics: Round, yellow/orange fruits weighing around 4-4.5 oz (120-130 g). Because it contains the … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Zheltye Slivki ot Borisovny (Borisovna’s Yellow Plums) 🌍 Origin: A highly treasured family heirloom passed down by Natalya Borisovna, a famous tomato grower and forum member from Kazakhstan. The name literally translates to “Yellow Plums from Borisovna.” 🌿 Plant Habit: Classified as a determinate, but it grows incredibly vigorously (more like … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Zheltyi Shar (Yellow Globe) 🌍 Origin: A commercial variety. The name translates exactly to “Yellow Globe”. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall), easily exceeding 6.5 ft (2 m). Performs great outdoors (requires heavy staking) and in greenhouses. 🍅 Fruit Characteristics: Bright yellow, perfectly round globes weighing around 5.3 oz (150 g). 👅 … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Yellow Fire 🌍 Origin: A beautiful striped novelty variety bred by the legendary American tomato breeder Tom Wagner (famous for creating the Green Zebra). 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall), though some growers note it can occasionally terminate its own growth early. A strong bush that performs very well both outdoors (reaching … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Zhigalo (Gigolo) 🌍 Origin: A commercial variety released by the Russian seed company “Biotechnica”. Known for its provocative name (Gigolo) due to its distinct, elongated, phallic shape. 🌿 Plant Habit: Compact determinate (tree-type dwarf). Usually grows to about 16-24 inches (40-60 cm). Has thick, rugose foliage that looks like a little … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Evpator F1 🌍 Origin: A highly reliable commercial F1 hybrid produced by the Russian seed company “Gavrish”. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall). Designed specifically for greenhouse and high-tunnel growing. 🍅 Fruit Characteristics: Perfectly smooth, oblate (flattened globe) red tomatoes weighing around 4.5-5.3 oz (130-150 g). 🛡️ Disease Resistance: An absolute tank. … Read more