Heirloom Tomato Varieties & Reviews | Tomat-Pomidor
Honest reviews of global tomato varieties from a 15-year-old growers community.
Welcome to one of the most unique and comprehensive tomato databases on the English-speaking web. This catalog isn’t based on generic seed packet descriptions—it is built entirely on the real, hands-on experience of everyday gardeners.
For over a decade, thousands of growers have shared their successes, failures, and harvest photos on one of the oldest and largest Russian-speaking gardening forums. We have taken this massive, multi-year knowledge base and carefully translated and summarized the very best of it for you.
What you will find in our catalog:
Whether you are looking for a bulletproof hybrid for a short season, an exotic anthocyanin variety, or the sweetest beefsteak you’ve ever tasted, the collective experience of our gardening community will help you find the perfect seed for your next harvest. Browse our subcategories below to explore!
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Izyuminka 🌍 Origin: Сommercial variety distributed by companies like Aelita. The name translates literally to “Little Raisin,” but in Russian, it is an idiom meaning “Zest” or “Highlight.” 🌿 Plant Habit: Determinate (bush). It stays very compact, reaching only about 2 feet (50-60 cm) tall. Excellent choice for open ground or … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Ispanskiy Temno-Malinovyi (Spanish Dark Raspberry) 🌍 Origin: A popular commercial and collectible variety in Russia. The name translates to “Spanish Dark Raspberry”. Sourced through collectors like V.V. Redko and commercial vendors like Uralskiy Dachnik. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall/vine) and extremely vigorous. Growers highly recommend pruning it to 3 or 4 … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Izumrudnaya Grusha (Emerald Pear) 🌍 Origin: A Russian heirloom whose name translates to “Emerald Pear”. A very popular Green-When-Ripe (GWR) variety. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall). Typically grows to 6.5 – 10 feet (2-3 m). The foliage is somewhat light and well-behaved, not overly bushy, but also not the weeping “wispy” … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Iskry Plameni (Sparks of Flame) 🌍 Origin: An Eastern European heirloom variety. The name translates beautifully to “Sparks of Flame”, which perfectly describes its striking red and yellow striped appearance. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall), but generally has a compact footprint with slender vines. Grows to about 5 feet (1.5 m) … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Inzhirnye (Fig) 🌍 Origin: A popular Russian heirloom variety. The name “Inzhirnye” translates to “Fig” or “Fig-shaped”. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall). Sturdy vines that typically reach about 4.5 feet (1.4 m). Highly productive and sets fruit reliably even in less-than-ideal weather. 🍅 Fruit Characteristics: Stunning pink, deeply ribbed (pleated) beefsteaks. … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Iyunskiy (June) 🌍 Origin: A legendary ultra-early Russian community heirloom. Note: There is a commercial variety sold by Sedek with the same name, but this thread specifically documents the famous “Forum Iyunskiy” circulated by the grower Sweet from St. Petersburg. 🌿 Plant Habit: Ultra-early dwarf (determinate). A stout, sturdy, compact little … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Indische Fleisch 🌍 Origin: An old heirloom variety. The name translates from German as “Indian Meat”. Despite the German name, its deeper origins trace back to India. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indet. Can be kept relatively compact or grown out to 6.5 feet (2 m) depending on conditions. Highly productive. Can be … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Izumrudnoe Yabloko (Emerald Apple) 🌍 Origin: A classic commercial green-when-ripe (GWR) variety dating back to the Soviet era. Released by multiple Russian seed companies over the years. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indet. Mid-height. Highly adaptable, performs well in both greenhouses and outdoors in the dirt. It is known for pushing megablooms and … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Inzhir Rozoviy (Pink Fig) 🌍 Origin: A commercial Russian variety released by the seed company Gavrish. It is part of their popular “Fig” series, which also includes Inzhir Krasniy (Red Fig) and Inzhir Zheltyy (Yellow Fig). The red version is widely considered to be a renaming of the Italian heirloom Abruzzo. … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): L’Espagnol Lefebvres (Lefebvre’s Spanish) 🌍 Origin: Originally an heirloom from Spain, likely introduced to the broader seed saver community through France or Quebec given the French name. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indet. Mid-season. A tall but slender plant that sets fruit very reliably even in cold, wet summers. Needs adequate potassium to … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Ildi 🌍 Origin: A widely known European commercial heirloom. It is famous for carrying the multiflora gene, which causes it to produce massive, complex flower clusters instead of standard tomato trusses. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indet. Seedlings can be deceptive, as they grow very slowly and look like compact dwarfs early on. … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Ivan Ivanych 🌍 Origin: A Russian heirloom variety. The name “Ivan Ivanych” is a traditional and respectful Russian first name and patronymic combination. 🌿 Plant Habit: A mid-sized plant with potato leaf (PL) foliage. It is a very early season variety known for uniform ripening, meaning the fruits tend to flush … Read more