Heirloom Tomato Varieties & Reviews | Tomat-Pomidor
Honest reviews of global tomato varieties from a 15-year-old growers community.
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Burracker’s Favorite 🌍 Origin: A famous heirloom variety from the USA (Virginia), named after the Burracker Hollow in the Blue Ridge Mountains. It was introduced to the gardening world by Craig LeHoullier. In Russia, it’s known as “Burrakerskie Lyubimtsy”. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate. The plant is notorious for having somewhat “wimpy” … Read more
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📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Banan Oranzhevyi (Orange Banana) 🌍 Origin: A popular commercial Russian variety (widely distributed by seed companies like Gavrish and Aelita). The name translates to “Orange Banana”. 🌿 Plant Habit: Mostly indeterminate (growing over 6.5 ft / 2 m in greenhouses), though some growers report shorter determinate strains. It has a characteristic … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Uriasa de Baltatesti 🌍 Origin: An old Eastern European heirloom from the Bălțătești commune in Romania. The name translates to “Giant of Bălțătești”. The seeds trace back to the collection of Vali Cucu, a well-known Romanian seed saver who researches and preserves local varieties. 🌿 Plant Habit: Produces an enormous yield. … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Gramma Climen Hagen 🌍 Origin: An heirloom from the McIntee family, grown for many years by their grandmother, Bertha Jean (Anderson) Climenhaga (born in 1910). Introduced to seed collectors by Dale Thurber. Note: The variety is often circulated under the spelling “Gramma Climen Hagen”. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall). A heavy-yielding … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Mamie Brown’s Pink 🌍 Origin: A family heirloom from West Virginia, USA. It was introduced to the Seed Savers Exchange (SSE) in 1995 by Alice Brown-Mattes. The seed traces back to her grandmother, Mamie Brown, who grew it in the 1930s. The Russian lineage of this seed often traces through American … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Babushkin Med (Grandma’s Honey) 🌍 Origin: A Russian collector variety bred by Angelina (Domashniy Pomidor). The name translates to “Grandma’s Honey”. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate and vigorous. There is some minor variation in leaf type among growers (some report standard Regular Leaf, others mention oversized foliage or even Potato Leaf segregations), … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Dwarf BSP 🌍 Origin: An independent dwarf variety bred in the USA. Seeds in this thread trace back to a well-known grower named Dale, who has been developing a whole family of experimental tree-type dwarfs (including OPO, PPI, ZSO, etc.). 🌿 Plant Habit: Tree-type dwarf with regular leaf (RL) foliage. Despite … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Bolshaya Malina (Big Raspberry) 🌍 Origin: Russian heirloom variety. The name translates to “Big Raspberry”. The original seeds in this thread trace back to the well-known Russian tomato collector V. Redko. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall). The height varies significantly depending on growing conditions: about 1.1m (3.5 ft) in open ground, … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Fish Lake Oxheart 🌍 Origin: A highly regarded Canadian heirloom variety originating from the Fish Lake area in Ontario. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate. Unlike many wispy, fragile-looking oxheart varieties, this one has a very vigorous, powerful, and robust bush. It easily reaches 6.5 ft (2 m) in a greenhouse. 🍅 Fruit … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Casady’s Folly (Безумие Кэсиди) 🌍 Origin: Bred by the famous American tomato breeder Tom Wagner. It is a stunning, elongated, red-and-gold striped paste/plum tomato. 🌿 Plant Habit: Highly Debated! The forum community has discovered two distinct genetic lines circulating in Russia: one is a tall, spindly, wispy-leafed indeterminate (often reaching 5-6.5 … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Grosse des Marais 🌍 Origin: A rare, endangered old French heirloom from the Champagne region (specifically the Reims area). The name translates to “Large of the Swamp,” as it was historically cultivated in the marshlands. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate, tall, and vigorous. Regular leaf. Unlike many oxhearts or heirlooms, it has … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Purple Pear Brandywine 🌍 Origin: A fantastic dark pear/plum variation in the famous Brandywine family. Known for combining the legendary Brandywine flavor with a unique shape. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall). Very robust and vigorous, usually grown to 2 stems in the greenhouse. 🍅 Fruit Characteristics: Dark raspberry/purple pear-shaped fruits. Sizes … Read more