Heirloom Tomato Varieties & Reviews | Tomat-Pomidor
Honest reviews of global tomato varieties from a 15-year-old growers community.
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Vechnyi Zov (Eternal Call) 🌍 Origin: A commercial Russian variety from the well-known seed company “Siberian Garden” (SibSad). The name translates to “Eternal Call”. 🌿 Plant Habit: Determinate. The seed packet claims it’s a short 28-inch (70 cm) bush, but growers in this thread report highly variable heights. Depending on pruning … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Vovchik 🌍 Origin: A commercial variety from Russia/Ukraine. The name is an affectionate diminutive for Vladimir (Little Vova). 💡 Editor’s Note (The Famous Mix-Up): This thread is a classic example of a happy accident. The official commercial seed packets describe Vovchik as a regular round/oblate tomato. However, a massive batch of … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Vnuchenka (Granddaughter) 🌍 Origin: A commercial variety from the Russian seed company “Aelita”. The name affectionately translates to “Little Granddaughter”. 🌿 Plant Habit: Determinate (short bush). Marketed as a patio/container variety that grows to 20 inches (50 cm), but real-world growers note it can easily reach 28 inches (70 cm) when … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Vspyshka (Flash) 🌍 Origin: A commercial Russian variety. The name translates to “Flash” or “Outburst”, which perfectly describes how fast it grows and sets fruit. 🌿 Plant Habit: Determinate (short bush), usually topping out around 20 inches (50 cm). It stays short but loves to sprawl, throwing out a ton of … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Vesennyaya Kapel (Spring Drop) 🌍 Origin: A highly productive commercial/heirloom variety. The name translates to “Spring Drop” (referencing a drop of melting snow in spring). Grower’s Note: There are two known strains circulating among collectors. One produces small pear-shaped fruits with a little beak (spout), originating from the Russian breeder Brizhan. … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Vidimo-Nevidimo (Countless) 🌍 Origin: A commercial variety from Siberian breeders. The Russian name “Vidimo-Nevidimo” translates to “Countless” or “Invisible Amount,” perfectly describing its incredibly heavy fruit set. 🌿 Plant Habit: Determinate (bush). Very compact and short-vined, usually topping out around 1.6-3 feet (0.5-1 m). It’s perfect for open ground and outdoor … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Vesennie Zamorozki (Spring Frosts) 🌍 Origin & Breeder: A famous Russian heirloom bred by Pavel Saraev. Saraev dedicated his life to developing extreme cold-tolerant tomatoes capable of surviving light spring frosts in open ground without protection. The name translates perfectly to “Spring Frosts”. 🌿 Plant Habit: Determinate (bush) variety. A compact, … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Velmozha (Nobleman) 🌍 Origin: A well-known commercial variety from Russia. The name “Velmozha” translates to “Nobleman” or “Grandee”. It was developed by the Institute of Cytology and Genetics (Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences) as an improved, determinate version of the famous Budenovka tomato. It is officially listed in … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Blauwerk 🌍 Origin: A beautiful, compact variety circulating among Eastern European collectors. The name “Blauwerk” suggests German origins. 🌿 Plant Habit: Determinate (bush). It is a very short, compact plant that only reaches about 20–24 inches (50–60 cm) in height. It is an early-season variety that requires almost zero pruning, making … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Budenovka Zelenaya (Green Budenovka) 🌍 Origin: A rare Ukrainian winter-keeper variety. “Budenovka” refers to the iconic pointed Soviet cavalry hat, which matches the shape of the fruit. 🌿 Plant Habit: Determinate, late-season maturity. It is a sturdy, compact plant with dense foliage cover. In a greenhouse, it tops out at around … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Betalux 🌍 Origin: A very popular ultra-early Polish commercial variety. 🌿 Plant Habit: Note that there are two versions of “Betalux” circulating in the seed trade: a standard determinate, and a tree-type super-determinate (micro-dwarf). The super-determinate version is an absolute dwarf, growing very compact but producing slightly smaller fruits. It requires … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Banzai 🌍 Origin: A Russian variety sold commercially by companies like Gavrish, though some growers have been saving their own family strains of this tomato since the 1990s. 🌿 Plant Habit: The commercial packet lists it as a 5 ft (1.5 m) plant, but growers consistently report it behaves as a … Read more