Heirloom Tomato Varieties & Reviews | Tomat-Pomidor
Honest reviews of global tomato varieties from a 15-year-old growers community.
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Verblyudy (Camels) 🌍 Origin: A unique Russian collector’s variety. The name “Verblyudy” translates to “Camels”. Why? Because it produces absolutely massive Potato Leaves (PL) that, according to growers, literally look like camel faces drooping down from the vine! 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate and highly vigorous. It has very thick, strong main … 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): Vashe Blagorodie (Your Honor) 🌍 Origin: A Russian commercial variety. The name translates to “Your Honor” or “Your Excellency”. Seeds are mostly distributed by the company Siberian Garden (SibSad) and independent breeders like Terentiev. 🌿 Plant Habit (Warning – highly variable!): Growers in this thread report wild variations depending on the … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Vesennyaya Radost (Spring Joy) 🌍 Origin: A fantastic commercial variety from the famous Russian seed company “Siberian Garden” (SibSad). The name translates to “Spring Joy”. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall) and extremely vigorous. It has a massive root system and thick foliage. Despite being a tall indet, it does exceptionally well … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Verna 🌍 Origin: A fantastic Eastern European heirloom variety. Seeds are widely passed around among collectors (like Lena Danko mentioned in this thread). 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall). It’s a mid-season variety that does great in a greenhouse or hoop house. Growers recommend pruning it to 2 or 3 main stems … 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): Valentina Tomato 🌍 Origin: A Russian commercial variety, heavily distributed by the “SeDeK” seed company. 🌿 Plant Habit: Determinate (bush). Typically grows about 24-28 inches (60-70 cm) tall. The Great Leaf Debate: Growers report two distinct strains circulating—one with Regular Leaf (RL) foliage and one with Potato Leaf (PL) foliage. Both … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Vostochnaya Pyshka (Eastern Pyshka) 🌍 Origin: A Russian commercial/heirloom variety. The name translates to “Eastern Pyshka” (a pyshka is a plump doughnut, often used to describe something very plump, round, and meaty). It was popularized by Russian seed collector V. Redko. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall). Growers note this plant is … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Volf Zossi (Wolf Zossi) 🌍 Origin: A variety originating from Germany. It was introduced to the Russian heirloom community by seed collector Vyacheslav Feldman. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall), regular leaf (RL), mid-season maturity. Growers report it yields very well when pruned to 2 or 3 stems. 🍅 Fruit Characteristics: Large, … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Vanskiy Rozovyi (Vani Pink) 🌍 Origin: Heirloom tomato originating from the Vani district in the country of Georgia (Caucasus region). It was heavily popularized among collectors by seed vendor Dmitry Gusev. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall). The plant is described as sturdy and robust, but not overly aggressive or leafy. It … 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): Vifleemskiy Ogon (Bethlehem’s Fire) 🌍 Origin: A stunning heirloom variety highly popular among Russian and Ukrainian collectors. The name translates to “Bethlehem’s Fire” (often circulated globally under this exact translation). 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall). An incredibly vigorous plant that performs exceptionally well in greenhouses, though it can also be grown … Read more