Quick Summary of Khlebosolnyi
- 🌍 Origin: A very popular, high-yielding commercial heirloom from Siberia (Siberian Garden / SibSad). The name “Khlebosolnyi” translates to “Hospitable” or “Generous Host”, referring to its massive yield.
- 🌿 Plant Habit: Determinate (bush) and spreading. It is officially rated for 80 cm (32 inches) in open ground, though it can reach over 1 m (3.3 ft) in a greenhouse. Very low maintenance—growers report you can skip pruning/suckering entirely if you have the space, though many prefer to prune lightly up to the first truss.
- 🍅 Fruit Characteristics: Bright red, flat-round (oblate) beefsteaks. They are massive for a bush tomato, ranging from 350-600 g (12-21 oz). The skin is soft. Note: The very first fruits on the bottom trusses often suffer from severe “catfacing” (misshapen, ribbed bottoms) due to megablooms.
- 👅 Flavor: Excellent. It is meaty, juicy, and very sweet, making it a fantastic slicer. Its only downside is a short shelf life (no more than 2 weeks) due to its soft, juicy flesh.
- ⏳ Maturity: Early season. Often one of the very first large beefsteaks to ripen in the garden.
Description from the seed packet:
A high-yielding, large-fruited, determinate variety for open ground. The bush is 80 cm (32 inches) tall, spreading, and can be grown without pruning (suckering). The fruits are flat-round, slightly ribbed, bright red, meaty, and sweet. Fruit weight is 350-600 g (12-21 oz). The undoubted advantages of the variety include: high and stable yield, resistance to temperature fluctuations, and high taste and market qualities of the fruits.
Photos by various forum members:
Seeds from SibSad. I planted it outdoors (open ground). It matches the characteristics, I liked the taste and yield. The variety is a real “workhorse”.
I heard reviews that it’s a bit soft and produces a lot of “misshapen” (catfaced) fruits, but is very productive and tasty. I really don’t know – should I plant it or not? I have the seeds from SibSad… 😕
Tatiana said:
I heard reviews that it’s a bit soft and produces a lot of “misshapen” (catfaced) fruits…
Yes, plant it – see for yourself! It really is very tasty!
Tanya, I grew it 2 years ago, they grew both in the greenhouse and outdoors in open ground. For me, “Khlebosolnyi” was one of the early ones; it was more productive outdoors.
Lilya, what a beauty! 👍 Did you prune/sucker it in the open ground?
Mine were not soft at all. They ripened as one of the very first, maybe that’s why they seemed so delicious. Bright, rich color.
Tatiana said:
Did you prune/sucker it in the open ground?
I pruned them partially, just up to the first flower truss.
My favorite variety! It’s listed as mid-season, but in reality, it’s closer to early season. Tasty, highly productive! Meaty, but not dry 😋
I counted 6 fruits on a truss, it holds them well. The fruits are slightly smaller, but not tiny by any means.
Tatiana said:
I heard reviews that it’s a bit soft and produces a lot of “misshapen” (catfaced) fruits, but is very productive and tasty…
Yes, the skin is soft, the fruits don’t store long after ripening. Two weeks, no more.
As for being “misshapen/catfaced”. The catfaced fruits are the large ones; the smooth/perfect ones are usually smaller. The first year, I saved seeds from the smoothest fruits, and the next year, they grew into smooth but small tomatoes, yep… The following year, I had to plant from the store-bought packet again and specifically save seeds from the ugly/catfaced ones.
So “catfacing” is just a characteristic of this variety here.
A tomato horror story. It set one huge ugly fruit per plant. I don’t even want to taste it.
And I liked it last year, grew it outdoors in open ground.
I really like this variety. Before I had a greenhouse, I grew it under row covers. Now I grow it in the greenhouse. A variety that has never let me down. This year it ripened as one of the very first. To prevent ugly/catfaced tomatoes, I pinch off the “megabloom” (fused blossom); otherwise, there would be even more of them on the vine. Large, juicy, meaty, not acidic, with a bright tomato flavor.
In open ground:
Thank you very much to everyone who left reviews in this thread! I planted it this year thanks to the reviews and didn’t regret it! They turned out early in the open ground (I took one large green tomato off each bush – they ripened perfectly off the vine) and the remaining ones started ripening rapidly. Delicious! Sweet! Productive! So what if they are a bit ugly – I’m not taking them to an exhibition! I regretted pruning them and running them to 3 stems. One minus – they don’t store long if picked fully ripe. But at least we ate our fill. The weather ruined this summer; tomatoes finished early. But on neighboring plots, they didn’t even pick a single ripe one. I treated mine with fungicides, so I don’t know if the variety is disease-resistant or if my “dancing with a tambourine” just helped prolong the harvest period a bit. In the greenhouse, they weren’t productive. I wish I could find a variety just as tasty and productive, but one that stores well. I will always plant this variety.
Girls, has anyone planted “Khlebosolnyi Rozovyi” (Pink Hospitable)? SibSad is really advertising it heavily.
vehvsirf said:
Girls, has anyone planted “Khlebosolnyi Rozovyi” (Pink)?
My mom planted it this summer, my daughter and I tasted it – we loved the flavor, it is really sweet! I can’t say anything about the yield, I don’t know, but the taste is amazing.
Who grew it in a greenhouse? I read that it’s 80 cm (32 inches). Is that outdoors or indoors? I plan to plant it this spring, and where is it better to place it—closer to the greenhouse entrance, or does it not matter?
I grew it in the greenhouse. It was over a meter (3.3 ft) tall, sitting in a side bed, not by the entrance. A very good variety. There were no ugly/catfaced ones, the fruits are slightly gathered/puckered at the stem, large (over 200g / 7 oz), very tasty, meaty, and juicy.
Nadezhda said:
My mom planted it [the Pink version] this summer… we loved the flavor, it is really sweet!
And do they mature at the same time (as the red one)?
It started ripening absolutely first for me, meaty, all fruits are large, about five per truss.
