Luda, I didn’t use grow lights, we have south-facing windows, the house is on a hill, 15th floor, neighboring buildings are lower than ours, the sun was already shining after New Year’s, and the days started getting longer. I just decided to see what would happen…
And I didn’t hand-pollinate, it set fruit on its own.
I will note that only Utenok behaved this way, other varieties just sat there waiting for summer 😄.
Thank you, Tamara! 🙌 🙏 I will definitely sow it one of these days! 🎉 What’s the best way right now, dry seeds or soak them? ✍️
Seeds are from Irina (irina58) 🙏 🙏 🙏 . The bush is quite low, very productive. The fruits are firm, small, with a beak, very rich yellow-orange color when fully ripe. My child loved running up to it and grabbing a couple. Delicious!!!
Tamara said:
This past season I took a risk and planted Utenok early, on December 1st…
Wow, that’s so cool, maybe I should try it too 👍
I received seeds for a tomato called “Utya” (Duck) from Kulik. I think this is also Utenok, judging by the description and photo.
Utya (early / 0.50m (20″) / 100g (3.5oz) / round / orange). The bush is spreading, the yield is impressive, stores well, they don’t get sick at all, even when lying on damp bare ground.
I’ll test it in the summer. And I also want to plant it earlier at home in a pot under a lamp. I won’t risk it in December, probably in early January.
P.S. Although, regarding the 100 grams, that’s a joke… 🙂
On January 7, we sowed pre-soaked Utenok seeds, and out of 5 seeds, today, January 8, 1 has already sprouted.
Natasha, why so early??? Or do you want to grow it in a pot???
In 2014, I grew it outdoors in open ground, everyone liked it a lot: compactness, yield, taste.
Yes, now I want to plant it in pots, I’ll see how it develops, then maybe I’ll plant it in open ground, or maybe as an understory crop in the greenhouse at the feet of tall tomatoes.
I also grew it last season, I liked it very much, it is delicious 😋
I also plan to sow Utenok in January, for further growing in a pot. I have seeds from “Agronika” LLC St. Petersburg.
Tatyana said:
This year I sowed seeds of Utenok tomato from Sedek. 9 out of 15 sprouted. Only one seedling looks like the photo, the rest are twice as tall and thinner, you can see that the seedlings are different. Off-type (wrong variety).
😞 😞 😞
The Utenok bushes are interesting, they resemble duck feet (webbed), I planted three bushes for the first time.
Olga said:
This year I sowed seeds of Utenok tomato from Sedek. 9 out of 15 sprouted. Only one seedling looks like the photo, the rest are twice as tall and thinner, you can see that the seedlings are different. Off-type.
I have the same story. 😞 Half of the bushes are thin, tall, much higher than the stated 35 cm (14 inches). The other half are stocky, short. I’ll keep an eye on them so I can save my own seeds.
My Utenok is also from Gavrish, the packet is exactly the same as Alena showed on the first page. I liked the variety very much, by a miracle I managed to snatch one for a photoshoot, otherwise, you can’t keep up with my family members 😛
There were specimens larger than the one in the photo, but unlikely more than 60-70 g (2-2.5 oz). And also this variety was the very first to ripen for me.
My Utenok from 2014. And I planted it again this year. A very compact, beautiful, good variety. The seeds were sent by Elena from New York. Thanks to her! I don’t know who she got them from.
I planted the poor thing in a bucket with compost. I did a bucket experiment, and I won’t do it again. The only drawback is a lack of watering. They can’t take anything from the soil themselves, and I only visit the dacha occasionally. But the tomatoes grew. And since the bucket was outside the greenhouse, they were almost eaten right off the vine. In the photos, the beak isn’t very visible, but it’s there! A decent little beak. I liked the variety very much, I will plant it in open ground.
Friends, when will you be sowing Utenok for seedlings? I’m thinking, maybe I should sow it together with Mongolian Dwarf and Iyunskiy (June)? Or is it a bit early?
Not early, if you want them early. Among the yellows, it and Zolotnik have been holding the standard for years.
But Mongolian is not early. It just doesn’t stretch and takes a very long time to sprout.
I sowed it in December 😳 Just testing the germination rate of the seeds.
Girls, tell me, my Utenok is curling its leaves, it started back in the seedling stage, and now it’s even worse. Is this normal? Or is it lacking something?
This is its varietal trait.
Mine is twisting them too. And one bush more than the others.
Turns out I saw the right Utenok seeds in the store today, and didn’t buy them. Silly me. For some reason, I thought Utenok was a red tomato. I’ll have to go back again.
In terms of taste, it became the disappointment of this year. Bland and rubbery like store-bought. Maybe it was lacking something in my garden..
Tatyana said:
In terms of taste, it became the disappointment of this year. Bland and rubbery like store-bought…
😲 😲 Tanya, where are your seeds from? For me, again — very tasty and beautiful!
Seeds are from Igor Semyonovich Pechurin, for him it’s also beautiful and tasty. I fell for the reviews.. By its looks, I definitely don’t have an off-type, it twisted leaves, the bushes are low, and the fruits are exactly the same… But the taste — complete crap grew for me.
Tatyana said:
……But the taste — complete crap.
Exactly.
Well then. And I bought it this summer aiming for 2017.
Well, here is a reason to plant it yourself on your own soil, in your conditions, and check *if people are telling the truth*.
I also bought it to see and check. But I will definitely plant it.
Svetlana, you should definitely plant it. Oddly enough, it’s tasty for many. I didn’t feed my tomatoes even once all summer, maybe it lacked something… I’ll try to repeat it from my own seeds someday… but not in 2017. Yield is also important to me. And Utenok is a small bush, what is there to pick from it.. I would forgive it everything for its taste and beauty, but so far it didn’t work out..
Svetlana said:
Well then. And I bought it this summer aiming for 2017.
Sveta, plant it. It’s resilient, tougher than any hybrids. But it’s tiny, keep that in mind. For me, it’s the only one that yielded 100%. When ripe, it’s tasty. I’m talking about the Northwest (Russia), meaning it’s tasty for us. 😉
Girls, thank you, I will plant it. I want to plant only determinates in one greenhouse, it’s small. My idea was generally to try it from different seed companies if I can buy them.
I bought from Aelita, and there’s also from Sortsemovoshch. I need to buy those too. Then we’ll see if there’s a difference.
I feed my tomatoes with various goodies, maybe it will like it at my place.
I will gladly follow the experiment.
In autumn, I always already want a new spring/summer, to do something in a new way, to try something. And even now this mood is beginning.
This is Utenok in early July (from Olga in Pskov, thanks!). Is it unproductive? And it is still growing suckers, setting fruit on them, and ripening. If you prune the suckers, then, of course, the yield on the main stem is already ending.
And about the taste – either an untasty strain got mixed in, or it cross-pollinated with an untasty variety at the commercial producers, or there are soil problems. It is tasty and sweet. It does not crack from rain, and it stores well both on the bush and picked. The walls are dense, so it is also suitable for pickling/salting. I will always plant it.
I liked it too. Productive, extended fruiting period, beautiful and tasty. Resistant to late blight! Excellent for canning. I am growing 2 bushes; I want to plant more next year.
I also liked the variety very much. In June it got frostbitten here, but then it set a lot of fruit on the suckers. Beautiful, bright orange color, meaty, sweet, it’s a pity it won’t survive until canning time 😄 and that charming pointy little beak 👍 I’ll plant more bushes next year.
The Utenok variety is productive, tasty, wasn’t affected by late blight, but split when overripe. The only thing I don’t like about it is its foliage.
I apologize, I’m repeating the photo, since it’s not visible in my upper message on this page.
Could you please tell me, do I understand correctly that this variety doesn’t need to be pruned (suckered) even in the conditions of the Northwest? Or should it be done partially?
Anya, you don’t need to sucker it. It doesn’t have many suckers, and it manages to yield on all of them.
By the way, mine did get affected by late blight eventually, but very late, in mid-September, I left a bush with a couple of tomatoes for an experiment.
Sorry that it’s without a photo and that I’m a newbie, but I really wanted to share my impressions about this variety:
I got the seeds from a local collector. A wonderful variety: everything is balanced in it – growth (determinate bush – I really love tomatoes of medium and short stature), the fruit color is bright orange, rich, even, with a charming beak. This year I had one bush, but the yield was 🙌 – a 10-liter bucket (2.5 gallons) of ripe ones, and green ones were still hanging at the end of October. It wasn’t sick with anything. The taste for me is a solid 5: wonderful for canning – the color stays bright, the fruit does not crack. It’s especially delicious “in its own juice”. I will definitely repeat it.
I bought Utenok seeds. Could someone who grew it please advise – at what distance from each other should the bushes be planted? I will grow them outdoors in open ground, there is plenty of space. But I want to know the optimal distance. Thank you 🙏
It grew outdoors for me. Between bushes it was 35-40 cm (14-16 inches), it was spreading, wide.
I look at all the photos, and it seems to me that mine has a different shape. In the first post.
Utenok, sown on 11/04/16 with dry seeds, starts flowering on 02/04/17. Bush height 33 cm (13 inches).
Vera said:
I look at all the photos, and it seems to me that mine has a different shape.
Vera, my ducklings from your seeds 🙏 turned out in shape “like everyone else’s”. So, it doesn’t matter.
Lyudmila said:
Utenok, sown on 11/04/16 with dry seeds, starts flowering on 02/04/17…
Are you growing it on the windowsill?
Svetlana, yes.
Utenok today.
Bush height is 52 cm (20.5 inches). Growing on a windowsill. Grow lights until January, since January it grows without supplemental lighting.
Oh, what a Duckling! I wanted to plant 4 bushes, but now I think maybe I need more?
Plant more, Sveta, you won’t regret it 👍
I join the glowing reviews about Utenok. Productive, early, baby bushes with bright, beautiful fruits. The taste is good, and it’s very suitable for canning.
I want to thank Ninulya for the seeds. A handsome one. Early. You can easily plant it in the flower garden for its beautiful leaves and fruits.
I planted it, seeds from Sedek. I liked the taste very much, but the yield 😢 very disappointing, just a few pieces.
And I planted from 2 producers: Sortsemovoshch and Sedek. Both are productive. But I liked Sedek’s better: it is taller for me, tomatoes are orange, larger than Sortsemovoshch’s, and very productive, set fruit on everything that bloomed.
A cutie)) I love yellow ones)) small, but tasty, sweet.
Recently we opened a jar of pickled ones, liked them too.
A wonderful variety, the bush is compact at first, up to 40 cm (16 inches) in height and sturdy, grew in the greenhouse at the feet of indets. Mine required tying up, as it gradually expanded and fell to the ground under the weight of the little fruits. Weight up to 40g (1.4 oz), yummy, for some reason mine has few seeds in it.
Hello everyone! My Utenok is ready too) tasted it today – very sweet! Yummy!
Utenok disappointed me this year. Didn’t save seeds and didn’t bother taking photos of it.
And Utenok pleased me a lot. The fruits are exactly what I love for canning. Size – just right for a one-liter jar, very thick walls and at the same time juicy. It was one of the last to get hit by late blight.
Svetlana said:
A wonderful variety, the bush is compact at first, up to 40 cm (16 inches) in height and sturdy, grew in the greenhouse at the feet of indets… Weight up to 40g, yummy…
Came to read about the variety to see if it can be planted for early harvest, turns out I’m already late!
I planted from seeds from Svetlana Svetikk, for which a huge thank you! The bush is exactly like the photo. And the taste! I’ve never tasted a sweeter tomato! And not bland. Became everyone’s favorite. Going to plant it.
Planted it this summer in open ground. Liked the taste and it tied a lot of little fruits, even though the weather was awful. The only thing is its growth is somewhat confusing (like a toy). Also thinking of planting it this year at the feet of indets in the greenhouse.
Planting Utenok for the second year. Last year everything died from late blight outdoors, except Utenok. It is simply unkillable. Last year we rolled it into jars for canning. This year I tried it fresh for the first time and regretted that I didn’t eat it fresh last year. Here are 2 short videos about my Utenoks in 2020.
I plant this little one every year, in the greenhouse at the feet of indets.
Utenok. The bushes are like toys, real short, sturdy little dwarfs. Look very decorative. The fruits are also firm, start ripening relatively early, and are quite tasty for an early tomato.
Thanks to Luda for the seeds.
Grew Utenok. Short (60 cm / 24 inches), few suckers, early, sets fruit without problems. The taste varied, there were both sour and bland fruits. Didn’t understand what it depends on. When under-watered – immediately gets blossom end rot. Won’t save seeds. It sits at home on the window in a 5-liter bag, will move to open ground in June.
In the photo – yellow.
What kind of taste can you expect on a window!! Excellent variety.
Natalya said:
What kind of taste can you expect on a window!! Excellent variety.
Other varieties were tasty on the window.
Utenok fully rehabilitated itself in the open ground. Tasty, sweet, meaty, productive. No seeds at all in the fruits. Apparently it took offense)))))
This year my Utenoks look like this:
Planted 3 bushes in an old barrel this year. Very productive. Pickled a 5-liter (1.3 gal) bucket with garlic, celery and hot pepper, and there’s still a whole plastic vegetable crate full sitting there. Didn’t get sick at all. The only thing is the fruits are different, some with a beak and some without. Seeds from SPb Sortsemovoshch.
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