Honest reviews of global tomato varieties from a 15-year-old growers community.
🍅 Quick take: Harvard Square is an indeterminate bicolor beefsteak known for its red and green striped skin and GWR (green-when-ripe) flesh. While yield reports are a bit of a mixed bag depending on conditions, the flavor is universally praised as out-of-this-world sweet and complex, even beating out famous GWR heirlooms like Malachite Box. Full … Read more
🍅 Quick take: An unstable, segregating antho breeding line (circulating under names like H-34 Rot, H-34 Gelb, and Belle Coeur) that produces stunning, dark-shouldered cocktail tomatoes with distinctive pointed tips. Growers report it throwing both RL and PL (regular and potato leaf) plants, with fruit colors ranging from red to yellow and pink. Flavor reviews … Read more
🍅 Quick take: German Gold is a late-season, indeterminate Mennonite heirloom that produces massive, incredibly tender bicolor beefsteaks. Growers swear by its world-class, melt-in-your-mouth flavor, with some ranking it as the absolute best-tasting mater in their garden. While yields can definitely be on the lower side, the eating experience makes it worth the garden space. … Read more
🍅 Quick take: Gold Stripes is an indeterminate dark, striped tomato that produces mid-sized fruits. Growers note a surprisingly tangy flavor for a dark variety, though growing in the shade might play a role. The main discussion in this thread revolves around its striking resemblance to the famous Chocolate Stripes, with growers diving into seed … Read more
🍅 Quick take: The USDA strain of Golden Queen is a historic indeterminate heirloom originally introduced by A.W. Livingston in 1882. Over the decades, commercial breeders selected out its distinct pink blush, but the USDA seed bank preserved the original, slightly bicolor genetics. Growers praise its tender, sweet, and low-acid flavor. Be aware that it … Read more
🍅 Quick take: Grosse Hative d’Orleans Bush is a semi-determinate, early-season red variety known for its sparse foliage and highly concentrated harvest. Growers appreciate it as a low-maintenance outdoor plant that delivers above-average yields of very juicy, seed-dense fruits. While the flavor is a basic, classic tomato taste, it is considered very good for such … Read more
🍅 Quick take: Golden Gates is a mid-season, indeterminate striped yellow tomato bred by Brad Gates, notable for its wispy foliage. There is some debate among growers about its stability, as some get small cherry-sized fruits while others get larger plum-sized tomatoes (up to 3.5 oz / 100 g). Flavor reviews are also mixed: some … Read more
🍅 Quick take: Great Divide is an indeterminate red beefsteak that produces juicy, oblate fruits with an excellent, sweet flavor. Growers highlight its thin skin and high seed count, noting that it performs very well outdoors and delivers solid yields. While some seed catalogs boast sizes up to 21 oz (600 g), everyday garden results … Read more
🍅 Quick take: This thread is a fascinating two-for-one. It starts with the authentic Goldene Königin, a historic 19th-century German heirloom that produces small, highly aromatic, mild yellow fruits on indeterminate vines. However, half the growers here actually grew a modern Russian commercial namesake called Zolotaya Koroleva (Golden Queen), which is a completely different variety … Read more
🍅 Quick take: Grandfather Ashlock is a mid-season, indeterminate heirloom. It’s an old Ashlock family heirloom from Kentucky. The true variety features potato leaf foliage and produces large, highly uniform, oblate pink beefsteaks. Growers praise its outstanding, sweet, and tender flavor. Keep an eye out for regular leaf off-types in seed batches, which tend to … Read more
🍅 Quick take: Golden Tiger is a mid-season indeterminate anthocyanin variety that produces stunning, small yellow cocktail tomatoes with fine purple stripes. Growers praise its juicy, sweet flavor and excellent shelf life. A major standout feature is its rugged disease resistance; it has proven capable of completely shrugging off severe outbreaks of late blight and … Read more
🍅 Quick take: Great Yellow Blue is a remarkably resilient, indeterminate anthocyanin variety that thrives outdoors even under poor weather conditions. Growers praise its ability to shrug off disease without any spraying, and it has even been known to survive fall frosts to keep producing. It yields medium-sized, uniquely colored exotic fruits with a very … Read more