Heirloom Tomato Varieties & Reviews | Tomat-Pomidor
Honest reviews of global tomato varieties from a 15-year-old growers community.
Quick Summary of Ultrafiolet (Ultraviolet) 🌍 Origin: A rare dark-fruited variety sent to Russian collectors in 2010 by Ukrainian tomato breeder D.G. Terentyev. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall), vigorous, and forms a massive, strong plant (“like a tree”). Interestingly, it starts out looking very weak and wispy as a seedling, but explodes with growth once … Read more
Quick Summary of Carbon (Uglerod) 🌍 Origin: A world-famous heirloom variety, widely known and grown by Russian tomato collectors under the translated name “Uglerod” (Carbon). 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall), but growers note it behaves very adaptably. Outdoors in open ground, it often acts semi-determinate, stopping around 1 m (3.3 ft). In greenhouses, it easily … Read more
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 Siegel’s Dark Stripes 🌍 Origin: A beautiful dark striped heirloom variety. Known in Russian collections as Temnye Polosy Sigelya. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall). Performs very well in a greenhouse environment and responds nicely to being pruned to 2 stems. 🍅 Fruit Characteristics: Oblate (flattened) fruits with a striking red-brown/mahogany base covered … Read more
Quick Summary of Dark Brown Honey (Temno-korichnevyi Myod) 🌍 Origin: A beautiful and productive dark-fruited heirloom variety. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall). Performs very well in a greenhouse environment, especially when pruned and maintained to 2 stems. 🍅 Fruit Characteristics: Produces lovely dark brown/mahogany, heart-shaped tomatoes (oxhearts). The fruits are medium to large, weighing up … Read more
Quick Summary of Dark Galaxy 🌍 Origin: Originally bred in the USA by Brad Gates of Wild Boar Farms. He released this variety into the world at an early stage (F3/F4 generation), warning that it was slightly unstable. This forum thread is a fascinating deep-dive into how Russian growers stabilized different lines of it over … Read more
Quick Summary of Svart 🌍 Origin & Name: A rare variety circulated by Russian private seed collectors (like V. Popenko). Its exact origins are unknown, but the word “Svart” translates to “Black” in Swedish and Norwegian, strongly suggesting Scandinavian or Northern European roots. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall), reaching about 1.5 meters (5 ft) when … Read more
Quick Summary of Brown Sugar (Sakhar Korichnevyi) 🌍 Origin & Marketing: A dark/brown Russian commercial variety, famously sold by the SeDek seed company. The packet description makes wild marketing claims, calling it a “rejuvenating apple” with anti-cancer and anti-heart-attack properties. The name translates to “Brown Sugar”. 🌿 Plant Habit: Officially listed as an indeterminate. However, … Read more
Quick Summary of Superekzotik (Super Exotic) 🌍 Origin: A highly popular Eastern European/Russian commercial heirloom. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall). It is a very vigorous vine, with growers reporting heights anywhere from 1.7 m to almost 2.5 m (5.5 to 8 ft) in a greenhouse. The foliage is relatively sparse/airy, allowing good light penetration. 🍅 … Read more
Quick Summary of Sleeping Lady 🌍 Origin: A well-known release from the international “Dwarf Tomato Project”, specifically bred for growing in limited spaces (pots, planters, containers, balconies). 🌿 Plant Habit: A true dwarf. It has a compact growth habit with beautiful, dark, rugose (wrinkled) foliage. While often staying small in containers, growers report it can … Read more
Quick Summary of Sara Black (Sara Chernaya) 🌍 Origin: A highly regarded dark tomato circulated among Eastern European and Russian collectors (many trace their seed lines back to German or local Ukrainian/Russian sources). 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate, but generally on the shorter side. Depending on whether it’s grown outdoors or in a greenhouse, growers report … Read more
Quick Summary of Sirenevoe Ozero (Lilac Lake) 🌍 Origin: A stunning dark heirloom variety from Eastern Europe. The name translates to “Lilac Lake.” Note: You may also see it sold under the name Buzkove Ozero, which is simply the Ukrainian translation of the exact same name. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate. In a greenhouse, it typically … Read more