Heirloom Tomato Varieties & Reviews | Tomat-Pomidor
Honest reviews of global tomato varieties from a 15-year-old growers community.
📌 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
📌 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): Kalman’s Hungarian Pink 🌍 Origin: A famous family heirloom originally from Hungary, introduced to the US heirloom community by Kalman Lajvort (Edison, NJ). It is highly regarded worldwide and was famously used by Polish breeder Anna Jankowski (Kozula) to create her highly sought-after K10 cross. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall). A … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Bulgarian Wine Giant 🌍 Origin: A highly prized heirloom variety with roots in Bulgaria, popularized among Russian seed collectors (like V. Redko). The original name is Vinnyi Bolgarskiy Velikan. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall). Very vigorous vines that can easily reach 10 ft (3 m) in a greenhouse, often draped over … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Black Vernissage (Vernisazh Chernyi) 🌍 Origin: A very popular, striking variety bred by Ukrainian tomato breeder Ruslan Dukhov. It is part of the famous “Vernissage” series, which also includes Pink, Yellow, and Green variations. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall). An extremely vigorous and productive vine that easily reaches over 6.5 ft … Read more