Growers’ Notes and Photos (USDA Zones 3-5 Experience)
When I heard that name, since my name is also Larisa Ivanovna, I naturally just had to grow this variety! Larina sent me the seeds, so a big shoutout to her for that 🌸. Grew two bushes in the greenhouse, they got to about 4 ft (1.2 m) tall. Didn’t have any green shoulders because I kept up with the potassium and calcium feedings. The fruits are perfectly uniform, round beauties, they look absolutely gorgeous in canning jars, and it turned out to be a very heavy yielder 🙂
Edited November 20, 2016 by Pomidoroved
Wait, is it seriously called “I Want Larisa Ivanovna” in real life? I kept seeing the name pop up on the forum, glad I can finally easily check out the photos.
I don’t know why everyone started calling it a Belarusian variety. I just decided to add it to the forum catalog as its own variety. If I know for sure a tomato was bred in Belarus, I mention it. Larina sent me the seeds for I Want Larisa Ivanovna (and I’m super grateful to her for that!)
I have no idea who bred it. Marina Devyatkova sent it to me. I didn’t actually grow it myself, just gave the seeds away to folks on the forum.
Just to give you the full picture, here are some more photos. On the last photo, the ones in the back are I Want Larisa Ivanovna, and the truss in the front is Tomatoberry.
Super variety! Awesome name, and an even better yield! Seeds came from Devyatkova on social media. Det, gets to about 3.3 ft (1 m) in the greenhouse. Considering the snowy summer we had, growing it outside in the dirt would’ve been a waste of time. You can easily let it run to multiple stems and suckers without any issues. Pic is from today, Aug 06.
On 8/6/2017, Krasnaya Shapka said:
Super variety! Awesome name, and an even better yield! Seeds came from Devyatkova on social media. Det, gets to about 3.3 ft (1 m) in the greenhouse. Considering the snowy summer we had, growing it outside in the dirt would’ve been a waste of time. You can easily let it run to multiple stems and suckers without any issues. Pic is from today, Aug 06.
I completely agree with you. The fruits aren’t huge, but the yield is very solid. Now I Want Larisa Ivanovna too 😄 Definitely growing this one again.
On 8/6/2017 at 1:22 PM, Krasnaya Shapka said:
Super variety! Awesome name, and an even better yield!
Det, gets to about 3.3 ft (1 m) in the greenhouse.
Completely agree! This variety totally won me over! Grew it in the greenhouse, didn’t prune it, height was around 3.3 ft (1 m), super heavy yielder, a ridiculous amount of fruit 👋 Perfect, uniform, slightly oval red globes up to 2 oz (60 g). And they turned out surprisingly tasty, with a very noticeable sweetness 😋
Edited September 17, 2019 by Svetikk
Really loved this variety. Tasty, sweet little stunners (weighing around 2 oz / 60 g).
Edited October 4, 2020 by Khrizantema57
Excellent det, pumped out a heavy harvest despite the brutal summer we had. Did not expect it to be this sweet, big shoutout to Svetikk for the seeds!
Full Summary: Plant, Yield, Taste and Storage
- 🌿 Plant: Determinate bush that grows between 3.3 and 4 ft (1-1.2 m) tall. It is incredibly low-maintenance and can be allowed to run to multiple stems with little to no pruning. It produces perfectly uniform, slightly oval red cocktail tomatoes weighing about 2 oz (60 g).
- 📈 Yield: Exceptionally high. Growers universally report bushes being absolutely loaded with fruit, often producing massive clusters that are perfect for pickling and whole canning.
- 👅 Taste: Consistently praised as surprisingly sweet. Unlike many heavy-yielding processing varieties that lean acidic or bland, this one has a very noticeable sugary flavor, making it great for fresh eating as well.
- 📦 Hardiness: Very resilient. It handled brutal, extreme summer heat waves perfectly without dropping blossoms or sacrificing yield. With proper calcium and potassium feeding, it resists green shoulders completely.
If you’re wondering how a tomato ended up with a name like “I Want Larisa Ivanovna”, it’s a pop culture reference! It comes from a famous quote in the classic 1977 Soviet comedy film Mimino, where the main character makes a comically blunt phone call trying to reach a flight attendant he has a crush on. It’s essentially the Russian equivalent of naming a tomato “Here’s Johnny!” or “I’ll Be Back.” Because the name is so recognizable in Russia, seeds for this variety spread like wildfire through social media and gardening forums just for the novelty of growing it!
