Heirloom Tomato Varieties & Reviews | Tomat-Pomidor
Honest reviews of global tomato varieties from a 15-year-old growers community.
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Ceman 🌍 Origin: A prolific plum/paste variety. While originally grown as a salad tomato, its characteristics make it an excellent processing type. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall) and mid-season. Produces large, heavy clusters of fruit on vigorous vines. 🍅 Fruit Characteristics: Large, elongated plum-shaped fruits with a beautiful red-pink color. They … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Cow’s Tit 🌍 Origin: A famous and slightly cheekily named heirloom from Russia, originally known as Korovye Vymya (Cow’s Udder) or Sisechka. Widely popularized among collectors by Russian seed seller V. Redko. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall). Performs well both in greenhouses and outdoors, though yields can vary depending on sun … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Carol Chyko’s Big Paste 🌍 Origin: A huge, classic heirloom paste tomato from Pennsylvania, USA. It was named after Carol Chyko. Note on translation: In Russian seed collections, it is frequently traded under the shortened (and slightly mistranslated) name “Большой Кэрол” (Big Carol). 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate. A very tall, powerful, … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Coeur de Boeuf de Nice 🌍 Origin: A classic French heirloom originally from the Mediterranean region around Nice. The name translates to “Bull’s Heart from Nice”. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall), vigorous grower. 🍅 Fruit Characteristics: Medium to large red tomatoes, typically weighing 150-300g (5.3-10.5 oz). The shape is highly variable … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Cafe Bule 🌍 Origin: An American heirloom variety known for producing masses of dark, pear-shaped cherry tomatoes. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate. Growers describe it as “well-behaved” and not overly aggressive in its growth. The foliage is relatively light-colored, taking on a purplish-blue hue in strong sunlight. 🍅 Fruit Characteristics: Small, beautiful … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Candy Sweet Icicle 🌍 Origin: Created by Brad Gates at Wild Boar Farms in California. Note: Growers report that two distinct color lines are currently circulating: a pearly pink/red version with yellow stripes, and a dark chocolate/brick-red version with green stripes (which is closer to the original release). 🌿 Plant Habit: … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Costoluto Fiorentino sel. Canestrino di Lucca 🌍 Origin & The Great Seed Mix-Up: A fascinating piece of seed history! Commercial Italian vendors sometimes sold seeds under this long, combined name. However, as Russian growers quickly discovered in this thread, these are actually two different Italian varieties. 1) Costoluto Fiorentino: A small, … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Coeur Fondant 🌍 Origin: A fantastic heirloom variety originating from France. The name translates beautifully to “Fondant Heart” or “Melting Heart”. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall). An extremely vigorous vine that can easily shoot up to 2–2.5 meters (6.5–8 ft). Grower Note: It may display physiological leaf roll early in the … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Carol Chyko’s Big Paste Black 🌍 Origin: A rare dark variant of the famous heirloom. According to growers, this specific line emerged as a cross between Black Krim and the original red Carol Chyko’s Big Paste. It is documented in Tatiana’s TOMATObase. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall). An incredibly vigorous and … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR) 🌍 Origin: A well-known elongated plum/paste tomato variety, often grown for sauces and processing. 🌿 Plant Habit: Determinate / Semi-determinate. A mid-late season variety that grows relatively compactly, reaching about 0.8 m (2.6 ft) when grown outdoors in open ground. 🍅 Fruit Characteristics: Red, elongated plum-shaped tomatoes. Grower tip on size: … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR) 🌍 Origin: A classic heirloom yellow pear-shaped cherry tomato. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall), mid-season. A vigorous grower that performs excellently in a greenhouse environment. 🍅 Fruit Characteristics: Bright yellow, small pear-shaped cherry tomatoes. They have a firm texture that holds up well. 👅 Flavor & Use: The flavor is described … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR) 🌍 Origin: An intriguing and highly desirable variety resulting from an accidental cross between the legendary heirloom Brandywine and the famous cherry tomato Sweet 100. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate, mid-season. It primarily features Potato Leaf (PL) foliage, though due to its genetics, growers report that it can still occasionally segregate and … Read more