Heirloom Tomato Varieties & Reviews | Tomat-Pomidor
Honest reviews of global tomato varieties from a 15-year-old growers community.
🍅 Quick take: Livingston’s Beauty is a landmark 19th-century indeterminate heirloom introduced in 1890 by Alexander W. Livingston. Renowned for helping transform the American tomato from a ribbed, wrinkled curiosity into a smooth slicer, it yields dependable crops of round, slightly flattened pink globes averaging 6-8 oz (170-230 g). Northern growers confirm its legendary hardiness, … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Cherokee Purple 🌍 Origin: A legendary pre-1890 heirloom from Tennessee, USA. According to lore, the seeds were originally given by the Cherokee Native American tribe. It was popularized in the tomato world by Craig LeHoullier, who received the seeds from J.D. Green in 1990. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate, though in some … Read more
Quick Summary of Brandywine Covlik’s Strain 🌍 Origin: A specific strain of the famous American Brandywine heirloom tomato. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall), featuring large, wide potato-type leaves. The bush is described as tall, slender, and somewhat sparse in foliage. It responds very well to fertilization. 🍅 Fruit Characteristics: Large, smooth, rounded-oblate beefsteaks. The color … Read more
Quick Summary of Yasha Yugoslavian 🌍 Origin & History: A legendary heirloom variety originally brought to the US from Yugoslavia. There is an ongoing historical debate (discussed in this thread) about its connection to the famous Crnkovic Yugoslavian variety, with many believing they are either the same or closely related sister lines from the Vojvodina … Read more
Quick Summary of Chesnovy (Reisetomate / Traveler’s Tomato) 🌍 Origin: A world-famous novelty variety. Known internationally as Reisetomate (German for Traveler’s Tomato). In Eastern Europe, it is often called Chesnovy (Garlic Tomato), Tomato-Brain, or even Tourist’s Breakfast. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate and incredibly vigorous. It produces a massive amount of suckers and can easily reach … Read more
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Quick Summary of Chinook Tomato 🌍 Origin: A gorgeous release from the renowned Canadian tomato breeder Karen Olivier. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (very tall) and vigorous. The vines are strong and easily reach the roof of a standard greenhouse (over 6.5 feet / 2 meters). It requires heavy-duty staking and tying due to the massive … Read more
Quick Summary of Tsifomandra 🌍 The Naming Mystery: In the West, Cyphomandra refers to the Tamarillo (a tropical tree that produces fruit). However, in Russia and Ukraine, seed companies adopted the name “Tsifomandra” for regular tomato varieties to market them as incredibly vigorous, tree-like plants with massive yields. 🧬 Strain Differences: This forum thread highlights … Read more
Quick Summary of Serdtse Buyvola (Buffalo Heart) 🌍 Origin & Name Confusion: There are actually two distinct varieties circulating among Russian growers under the translated name “Buffalo Heart” (Serdtse Buyvola). 1) The Siberian version (SibSad): A pink, smooth oxheart that is usually determinate or semi-determinate. 2) The European version: An imported French/Spanish variety (Corazon de … Read more
Quick Summary of Anthony’s Passionate Heart 🌍 Origin & History: A deeply meaningful American variety released by TomatoFest to honor the legacy of the late chef, writer, and traveler Anthony Bourdain. It was bred by respected tomato breeder Jeff Dawson, who crossed ‘Sungold’ with ‘Amish Paste’. After seven years of stabilization, this distinct red oxheart … Read more
Quick Summary of Serafima 🌍 Origin: An experimental variety developed by the well-known Latvian tomato breeder Valdis Puliņš. “Serafima” is a traditional Eastern European female name. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate, but tends to stay on the shorter side for an indet (growers report heights between 1.3m – 1.7m / 4.2 – 5.5 ft in greenhouses). … Read more
Quick Summary of Rozovyi Flamingo (Pink Flamingo) 🌍 The Great Name Controversy: “Pink Flamingo” is one of the most fiercely debated names in the Russian tomato community. Several different seed companies and private collectors released entirely different varieties under this exact same name, leading to endless confusion. 🧬 The Different Variants: If you buy or … Read more
Quick Summary of Work Release Paste 🌍 Origin & “Lost in Translation” Story: This is a famous large Italian/US heirloom. However, when it was introduced to the Russian tomato community, the name was awkwardly auto-translated as “Rabochiy Vypusk Pasty” (which translates back literally as “Industrial Production of Macaroni”). The bizarre name caused a lot of … Read more