Heirloom Tomato Varieties & Reviews | Tomat-Pomidor
Honest reviews of global tomato varieties from a 15-year-old growers community.
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Albenga Oxheart 🌍 Origin: A classic Italian heirloom from the Liguria region. Popularized among collectors by Dale Thurber (Delectation of Tomatoes). Important distinction: This is the smooth, classic oxheart version, not to be confused with “Cuore di Bue di Albenga,” which is a deeply ribbed, pear-shaped (pouch) variety. 🌿 Plant Habit: … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Apelsin (Orange) 🌍 Origin: A very popular commercial Russian heirloom. The name translates literally to “Orange” (the citrus fruit), perfectly describing its appearance. Distributed by major Russian seed companies like SeDeK, Aelita, and Poisk. 🌿 Plant Habit: Generally considered indeterminate (or semi-determinate depending on conditions), mid-season. Growth height varies from 1 … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Costoluto Genovese 🌍 Origin: A legendary Italian heirloom from the Genoa region. It has been a staple in Italian gardens for generations, highly prized for its heavily scalloped, decorative shape. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall), vigorous, and incredibly robust. It is famous for its hardiness, tolerating both heat spells and cooler … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Chilo Della Garfagnana 🌍 Origin: A treasured old family heirloom from the Garfagnana region of Tuscany, Italy. The name loosely translates to “Kilo of Garfagnana”, hinting at the massive potential size of its fruits. 🌿 Plant Habit: Semi-determinate or short indeterminate. It produces a vigorous, stout bush with regular foliage that … Read more
📌 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): Corrogo 🌍 Origin: A striking, deeply pleated (ruffled) heirloom variety, highly valued for its unique decorative shape that resembles an accordion or a blooming flower when sliced. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall), mid-early season. It is a very vigorous, low-maintenance variety that easily handles being grown with multiple stems without sacrificing … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Carmina 🌍 Origin: A wonderful heirloom slicing variety known for its distinctive appearance and reliable production. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall), mid-season. The plant grows strong and vigorous, producing very good yields. 🍅 Fruit Characteristics: Unusually shaped, ribbed pink beefsteaks. The interior flesh is beautifully colored—mostly pink with a striking crimson-red … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Connie’s Cain 🌍 Origin: A fantastic heirloom beefsteak variety known for its outstanding vigor and reliable production. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall). This is a true monster of a plant! It grows exceptionally tall and vigorous, easily surpassing 3 meters (10 feet) in height under good conditions. 🍅 Fruit Characteristics: Classic, … 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): Cherokee Purple Heart 🌍 Origin: An oxheart variation/mutation of the legendary American heirloom, Cherokee Purple. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate. Like many classic oxheart varieties, it has a very “wispy,” weeping, and delicate plant structure (often looking wilted or wimpy even when perfectly healthy). Some growers recommend planting two per hole to … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Chianti Rose 🌍 Origin: An American heirloom, reportedly developed from a cross between the legendary ‘Brandywine’ and an unknown Italian heirloom variety. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate, Potato Leaf (PL) foliage. 🍅 Fruit Characteristics: Large pink beefsteaks, oblate (flat-round) in shape. They are quite massive, typically weighing between 300-500g (10.5–17.5 oz). 👅 … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Coeur de Surpriz (Heart of Surpriz) 🌍 Origin: A fascinating French artisanal variety with a dramatic backstory. Originally developed by Madame Jacqueline Morel and named after her dog, “Surpriz”. The heart-shaped version (“Coeur de Surpriz”) is believed to be a strain/mutation discovered by Sébastien Berthier. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate, regular leaf. … Read more