Quick Summary of Shchelkovskiy Ranniy (Shchelkovsky Early)
- 🌍 Origin: A Russian commercial variety. The name translates to “Shchelkovsky Early”. It was widely distributed by the commercial seed company “Russkiy Ogorod” (Russian Garden).
- 🌿 Plant Habit: Determinate, compact bush. Seed packets claim a micro-dwarf height of 30–35 cm (12–14 inches), though greenhouse growers report it reaching up to 70 cm (27 inches). It produces a fast, highly concentrated harvest.
- 🍃 Foliage: Note on stability: Growers report significant genetic variation depending on the seed batch. Some get potato-leaf plants, while others get regular-leaf plants.
- 🍅 Fruit Characteristics: Red, round fruits weighing anywhere from 40 to 100 g (1.4–3.5 oz). They ripen evenly with no green shoulders.
- 👅 Flavor: Ordinary, standard tomato flavor. Nothing exceptional, but good for early production.
- ⏳ Maturity: Early season (sometimes marketed as “extra early”).
Description from the seed packet:
An extra-early variety. The plant is compact, 30–35 cm (12–14 inches) tall. Does not require pruning (suckering). The fruit has no green spot at the stem, weighs 40–60 g (1.4–2.1 oz), and has good taste qualities. Multi-purpose use. It is distinguished by a fast and concentrated yield. Suitable for dense planting and for direct sowing into the ground from mid-May.
Photo author: cat2008
I grew it for 2 years from “Russkiy Ogorod” (RO) seeds. Unfortunately, I didn’t take any photos. It almost completely matches the description, except for being extra-early. I would say it’s just early. I, of course, pruned it 😄, leaving 3 stems. It set and ripened its entire crop almost simultaneously, and since I didn’t leave any suckers, I immediately pulled it out, freeing up space for its neighbors.
The taste is ordinary — not bad. The leaf type was potato-leaf both years (the seeds were from a packet, I didn’t save my own). The fruits are red, about 100 grams (3.5 oz) each. The yield is normal. The height was about 70 cm (27 inches) in the greenhouse. Last year it got frostbitten, but when it recovered, it tried its best with its last bit of strength. It is not prone to diseases.
I gave some seedlings to my neighbor for outdoor growing, and I got the feeling he had more tomatoes on it than I did 😞.
Mine had regular leaves… Didn’t like it… Nothing special… 😕
Such a difference — one forum member gets potato leaves, another gets regular leaves — suggests that the variety as such hardly exists. This terrible seed company is selling some wild mixes. I wouldn’t recommend growing anything from “Russkiy Ogorod”, because every time you buy from them, you’re buying a pig in a poke.
