Heirloom Tomato Varieties & Reviews | Tomat-Pomidor
Honest reviews of global tomato varieties from a 15-year-old growers community.
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Gelfrut Zolotoy (Golden Gelfrut) 🌍 Origin: A highly productive commercial/heirloom variety from Ukraine, popularized by famous seed collectors like A. Kulik and V. Redko. 🌿 Plant Habit: Determinate (bush). Compact and manageable, usually growing to about 3.3 ft (1 m) tall. Performs beautifully outdoors in open ground even in shorter, cooler … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Gigant Limonnyi (Lemon Giant) 🌍 Origin: A famous Russian heirloom. It is widely distributed by the renowned seed company Siberian Garden (SibSad), as well as kept pure by private collectors. The name translates directly to “Lemon Giant”. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall), typically reaching around 6 to 6.2 ft (1.8 – … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Gostinets 🌍 Origin: A Russian variety released as part of the “Vkusnoteka” (Tasty Collection) line. The name roughly translates to “A Little Gift” or “Treat”. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall), but growers report it being fairly manageable, reaching about 5 ft (1.5 m) in a greenhouse. Requires staking and pruning. 🍅 … Read more
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📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Grapefruit 🌍 Origin: A highly regarded commercial/heirloom variety. The original “true” Grapefruit is a stunning bi-color tomato (yellow/orange with a red blush and red marbling inside). 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate. A very tall and powerful plant, easily reaching 6.5–8 ft (2–2.4 m) in a greenhouse. It can be grown outdoors but … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Hawaiian Pineapple 🌍 Origin: A famous, late-season heirloom from North America. Known for its massive size and incredible tropical flavor. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate. A robust, thick-stemmed plant. It is notoriously a late-season variety that can be a bit stingy with fruit set during extreme heat. 🍅 Fruit Characteristics: Large, stunning … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Woterhorn (Waterhorn) 🌍 Origin & Naming Mystery: A rare bicolor heirloom circulating among Eastern European collectors. Due to hand-written seed trades, the name has morphed across various forums into WoterNhorn, WAterNhorn, WOterhorn, and WAterhorn. 🧬 Genetics (Is it Tuxhorn?): Many growers suspected this was just a misnamed clone of the famous … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): V Desyatku (Bullseye) 🌍 Origin: A very reliable Russian commercial variety. The name “V Desyatku” is a Russian idiom that translates roughly to “Bullseye”, “Spot On”, or “Hitting the Mark” (referring to hitting the 10-point ring on a target). 🌿 Plant Habit: Determinate. It usually grows taller than advertised. While packets … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Vishnya Zholtaya (Yellow Cherry) 🌍 Origin: A very popular commercial Russian cherry variety, often distributed by the “Gavrish” seed company. The name directly translates to “Yellow Cherry”. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate and incredibly vigorous. Growers warn that if not strictly pruned, it will pump out excessive foliage and turn into a … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Vodopad (Waterfall) 🌍 Origin: A highly productive commercial variety from the Russian seed company “Aelita”, officially entered into the Russian State Register in 2001. The name perfectly translates to “Waterfall”, describing how the massive flower trusses cascade down the plant. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall), but generally medium-height compared to wilder … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Vernaya Lyubov (True Love) 🌍 Origin: A rare Russian heirloom/commercial variety. The name translates beautifully to “True Love”. 🌿 Plant Habit: Determinate. It is a sturdy tree-type (rugose) dwarf that stays compact, reaching only about 24 inches (60 cm) tall. 🍅 Fruit Characteristics: Stunning golden-yellow rounded hearts with a very distinct, … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Verblyudy (Camels) 🌍 Origin: A unique Russian collector’s variety. The name “Verblyudy” translates to “Camels”. Why? Because it produces absolutely massive Potato Leaves (PL) that, according to growers, literally look like camel faces drooping down from the vine! 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate and highly vigorous. It has very thick, strong main … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Vintage Wine 🌍 Origin: A famous commercial heirloom known for its striking looks. In Russia, seeds for this variety were heavily circulated by well-known collector V.D. Popenko. 🌿 Plant Habit: Mostly an early-to-mid-season determinate/semi-determinate. It naturally has Potato Leaf (PL) foliage, though growers in this thread discuss experiencing Regular Leaf (RL) … Read more