Growers’ Notes and Photos (USDA Zone 8 Experience)
I bought seeds for this variety locally. I couldn’t find its origins listed anywhere, but based on the name, I’d guess it comes from Eastern Europe or some Slavic country. The accent is on the first syllable.
Sowed the seeds on February 14th, and moved it to the cold frame in March to harden off. I only had one plant, set it out in the dirt on May 5th under perforated plastic. It handled the low temperatures perfectly, fruit set was great, and it grew to about 4 feet (1.2 m) tall. We didn’t prune the suckers, so the plant ended up being very wide. The clusters have 13-20 tomatoes, they are elongated and forked.
The fruits are orange, sweet, 0.5-0.7 oz (15-20 g). When the rains started, these cherries didn’t split at all, and they didn’t crack from the cold either. The Amur Tiger sitting right next to it had its fruits completely explode from the cold.
It kept fruiting right up until late blight took it out in early September. Our girls were constantly picking them clean, they love orange tomatoes. The first orange ones ripened right near the ground on July 3rd.
Full Summary: Plant, Yield, Taste and Storage
- 🌿 Plant: A semi-determinate or compact indeterminate vine that reaches about 4 feet (1.2 m) tall. If left unpruned, it will bush out wide and produce heavily on multiple lateral vines. It features outstanding cold tolerance, shrugging off spring chills without dropping blossoms.
- 🍅 Fruit: Bright orange cherry tomatoes weighing around 0.5-0.7 oz (15-20 g). They are highly resistant to cracking and splitting, even during heavy rains and sharp temperature drops.
- 📈 Yield: Excellent. It produces long, forked, multiflora-style clusters holding up to 20 cherries each. It is an early producer that will keep setting fruit until frost or late blight takes it down.
- 👅 Taste: Sweet and highly popular for fresh snacking, especially with children.
