Honest reviews of global tomato varieties from a 15-year-old growers community.
Quick Summary of Teplichnyi Temnyi (Greenhouse Dark) 🌍 Origin: A Russian heirloom variety, originally distributed by a well-known collector named Suvorov from St. Petersburg. The name translates to “Greenhouse Dark”. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall), but growers note that it doesn’t aggressively shoot upward like some vines. The bush is quite sturdy. Interestingly, despite its … Read more
Quick Summary of Tunido (Тунидо) 🌍 Origin & The American Connection: An interesting “lost” variety. A Russian grower notes that her old, hand-packed seeds stated the variety originated in the USA. Given its appearance, it is highly likely that “Tunido” is a localized Russian name for an American striped paste tomato (such as Striped Roman … Read more
Quick Summary of Taymyr 🌍 Origin: An ultra-early commercial Russian variety introduced by the “Biotechnica” seed company. It is named after the Taymyr Peninsula in the extreme north of Siberia, hinting at its exceptional cold tolerance. 🌿 Plant Habit: Originally bred to be an ultra-compact determinate (dwarf/tree-type) bush, reaching only 30 cm (12 inches) in … Read more
Quick Summary of Teshchin Yazyk (Mother-in-Law’s Tongue) 🌍 Origin: A fantastic heirloom variety originating from Ukraine. The hilarious name translates to “Mother-in-Law’s Tongue”, a playful nod to the long, slightly pointed, “sharp” shape of the fruit. 🌿 Plant Habit: Mid-sized plant (often growing as a compact indeterminate), highly productive, and well-suited for greenhouse cultivation. 🍅 … Read more
Quick Summary of Tolstyi Botsman (Fat Boatswain) 🌍 Origin: A commercial Russian variety introduced by the “Semena Altaya” (Seeds of Altai) company. The rather unique name translates to “Fat Boatswain”. 🌿 Plant Habit: Determinate (bush). Intended for growing outdoors in open ground. 🍅 Fruit Characteristics: Striped bicolor tomatoes (red with golden/yellowish streaks). The largest fruits … Read more
Quick Summary of Tigrovyi (Tiger) 🌍 Origin: A commercial Russian variety introduced by the “Gavrish” seed company. The name translates simply to “Tiger”. 🌿 Plant Habit (Variable Genetics): Officially listed as growing up to 1.5 meters (5 ft). However, grower reports vary wildly. Some report it acting as a semi-determinate (where the main stem self-tops/terminates … Read more
Quick Summary of Tamara 🌍 Origin: A Russian commercial heirloom variety. It is well-documented in North America via Tatiana Kouchnareva’s TOMATObase. 🌿 Plant Habit (The Det vs. Indet Debate): There is some conflicting information regarding its growth habit. Commercial Russian vendors (like Redko) list it as a determinate, and some growers report it stopping around … Read more
Quick Summary of Tomawak (Tamawak) 🌍 Origin & History: A fascinating “supermarket rescue” variety! It originally started as a commercial ribbed tomato imported from Spain (or Holland) under the name Tomawak (likely a play on “Tomahawk” due to its ribbed shape). Forum members saved seeds from the store-bought fruit, and it successfully de-hybridized over several … Read more
Quick Summary of Tayana (Тайяна) 🌍 Origin: A unique Russian dwarf variety, primarily known among collectors for its highly ornamental appearance. 🌿 Plant Habit & Leaves: Determinate (dwarf bush). It stays very compact, reaching only 45-50 cm (18-20 inches) in height. The absolute standout feature is its highly dissected, lacy, carrot-like foliage (similar to the … Read more
Quick Summary of Timofeich (Тимофеич) 🌍 Origin: A highly productive Russian commercial variety, originally distributed by the GISOK seed company. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall) and extremely vigorous. The bush is described as very powerful, easily growing over 2 meters (6.5 ft) in a greenhouse setting. 🍅 Fruit Characteristics: Large, slightly oblate (flattened) beefsteaks. Growers … Read more
Quick Summary of Tie Feen (Tiffan) 🌍 Origin & The Name Mystery: Known in Russian collections as Tie Feen (Ти Феен), forum members suspect this is actually a localized mispronunciation of the American heirloom “Tiffan”. Tatiana Kouchnareva’s database lists Tiffan as a potato-leaf pink beefsteak from Dorothy Beiswenger (MN). 🌿 Plant Habit & Genetics: Indeterminate, … Read more
Quick Summary of Terion 🌍 Origin: A commercial variety, heavily marketed as an ultra-productive canning tomato. However, real-world grower reviews are quite mixed. 🌿 Plant Habit: Determinate (bush). It grows very compact and requires absolutely no pruning (suckering). Perfect for growing outdoors in open ground. 🍅 Fruit Characteristics: Bright red, round-oval (plum/paste) tomatoes of medium … Read more