Heirloom Tomato Varieties & Reviews | Tomat-Pomidor
Honest reviews of global tomato varieties from a 15-year-old growers community.
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Cafe Bule 🌍 Origin: An American heirloom variety known for producing masses of dark, pear-shaped cherry tomatoes. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate. Growers describe it as “well-behaved” and not overly aggressive in its growth. The foliage is relatively light-colored, taking on a purplish-blue hue in strong sunlight. 🍅 Fruit Characteristics: Small, beautiful … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Carol Chyko’s Big Paste Black 🌍 Origin: A rare dark variant of the famous heirloom. According to growers, this specific line emerged as a cross between Black Krim and the original red Carol Chyko’s Big Paste. It is documented in Tatiana’s TOMATObase. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall). An incredibly vigorous and … Read more
Quick Summary of Bing Cherry 🌿 Plant Habit: Determinate / Semi-determinate. Grows to a compact height of about 1.2 m (4 ft) when planted outdoors. Highly praised for its robust health, disease resistance, and cold tolerance. 🍅 Fruit Characteristics: Gorgeous anthocyanin (blue/purple) cherry tomatoes with a red base. They possess unique color shades that make … Read more
Quick Summary of Yaponskiy Krab Zheltyi (Japanese Crab Yellow) 🌍 Origin: A Russian commercial heirloom originally distributed by breeder Alexandrov. The name translates to “Japanese Crab Yellow” due to its heavily ribbed, flattened shape resembling a crab. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate / Mid-tall. Usually grows to about 1.5–1.7 m (5–5.5 ft). Known for its extreme … Read more
Quick Summary of Shokoladnaya Amazonka (Chocolate Amazon) 🌍 Origin: A Russian heirloom variety widely circulated among prominent private seed collectors (such as Popenko and Redko). The name translates to “Chocolate Amazon”. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate, though some growers describe it as medium-tall, reaching about 1.5 m (5 ft) in greenhouses. The plant is sturdy and … Read more
Quick Summary of Cherrikollo F1 🌍 Origin: A commercial F1 hybrid variety from the Russian seed company “Semko Junior”. 🌿 Plant Habit: An extremely vigorous, fast-growing indeterminate. It produces massive, wide leaves and an unbelievable amount of suckers. It requires strict pruning and tying to a trellis, otherwise, it quickly turns the greenhouse into an … Read more
Quick Summary of Chernika / Golubika (Blueberry) 🌍 Origin: A striking Russian commercial and collector’s variety. In Russian, it circulates under two synonymous names: Chernika and Golubika (both translate to “Blueberry”). 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate, typically growing to 1.5–2 meters (5–6.5 ft) tall. The plant is highly ornamental, featuring dark purple-tinged foliage that looks beautiful … Read more
Quick Summary of Fantaziya (Fantasia) 🌍 Origin: A Russian commercial variety from the “Agrosemtoms” seed company. The name translates to “Fantasia” or “Fantasy”. 🌿 Plant Habit: Early-ripening (90-95 days) and indeterminate. It is highly adapted to northern regions and adverse weather conditions. It also boasts excellent disease resistance, specifically to Tobacco Mosaic Virus (TMV) and … Read more
Quick Summary of Giante Friulano (Friulian Giant) 🌍 Origin: An Italian heirloom variety from the Friuli region. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate. Possesses absolutely incredible disease resistance and cold tolerance. Growers report it staying perfectly green and healthy even through late autumn frosts, completely shrugging off severe fungal pressures. 🍅 Fruit Characteristics: Red, ribbed plum or … Read more
Quick Summary of Faworyt 7/2 Potato Leaf 🌍 Origin: A new Polish breeding line resulting from a cross between Kuban Black Pepper and Malinowa Sakiewka. The name translates to “Favorite 7/2”. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate. A powerful, well-foliaged plant with a dense canopy of large Potato Leaf (PL) foliage. It shows excellent disease resistance and … Read more
Quick Summary of Sgt. Pepper’s 🌍 Origin: A highly famous anthocyanin (blue/purple) cross bred in the USA (by Jason Haynes). It is named after the iconic Beatles album. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate. This variety is famous for its extremely “wispy”, slender, and weeping foliage. In the seedling stage and in the garden, it looks incredibly … Read more
Quick Summary of Syzranskaya Pipochka 🌍 Origin: A treasured, historic Russian heirloom from the city of Syzran, known to be over 100 years old. The name translates to “Syzran Little Beak,” referring to its pointed shape. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall vining), mid-early season. The bush is powerful, highly vigorous, and completely disease-resistant. Growers recommend … Read more