Heirloom Tomato Varieties & Reviews | Tomat-Pomidor
Honest reviews of global tomato varieties from a 15-year-old growers community.
🍅 Quick take: Main love is an indeterminate, mid-season culinary stuffer tomato. It yields bright red, elongated pepper-shaped fruits with semi-hollow seed cavities designed specifically for baking and stuffing. Tough and fuss-free, it delivers strong yields outdoors in short northern seasons, with seeds that scoop out effortlessly. Full summary ↓ Growers’ Notes and Photos (USDA … Read more
🍅 Quick take: Liguria is a mid-late season indeterminate variety that produces gorgeous, heavily ribbed, pear-shaped red tomatoes. While growers agree it is a vigorous vine that sets stunning fruit, reviews on taste and texture are highly mixed. Some report dense, juicy, and sweet fruits with heavy feeding, while others find them hollow, tart, and … Read more
🍅 Quick take: Lotaringian Beauty (widely known as Beauty Lottringa) is a very tall, late-season indeterminate variety famous for its massive, heavily fluted, accordion-like shape. Available in red, orange, and pale yellow variants, it is an absolute stunner visually. However, growers consistently note that the fruits are mostly hollow inside with very little seed gel, … Read more
📌 Quick Summary: Gezahnte Bührer-Keel 🌍 Origin: A stunning European heirloom. Originally from Switzerland, the name Gezahnte translates to “Toothed” (referencing its deep pleats/ribs), while Bührer-Keel refers to the Swiss family who historically cultivated and preserved the variety. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall). A very robust and powerful plant that easily tops 6.5 feet (2 … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Californian Tulip 🌍 Origin: The exact origin and breeder are unknown, but it circulates widely in Eastern European seed-saving networks under the name “Kaliforniyskiy Tyulpan”. 🌿 Plant Habit: Mid-season indeterminate. Stays relatively compact, reaching around 5 feet (1.5 m) in open ground or 5.2 feet (1.6 m) in a greenhouse. Unbelievably … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Iskry Plameni (Sparks of Flame) 🌍 Origin: An Eastern European heirloom variety. The name translates beautifully to “Sparks of Flame”, which perfectly describes its striking red and yellow striped appearance. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall), but generally has a compact footprint with slender vines. Grows to about 5 feet (1.5 m) … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Zapotec Pink Ribbed 🌍 Origin: A famous indigenous heirloom originally cultivated by the Zapotec people of Oaxaca, Mexico. Renowned for its deeply pleated, almost ruffled appearance. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall). A vigorous, heavy-vined plant that easily reaches 5.9 feet (1.8 m) in a greenhouse setting. 🍅 Fruit Characteristics: Deeply ribbed, … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Zheltyi Perets (Yellow Pepper) 🌍 Origin: A Russian commercial/heirloom variety. The name simply translates to “Yellow Pepper,” referencing its bell pepper-like shape and completely hollow interior. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall). An aggressive and highly productive plant with a very long fruiting season. 🍅 Fruit Characteristics: Bright yellow, heavily ribbed, bell-pepper … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Big Girl (Большая девочка) 🌍 Origin: Often circulated among Russian and Ukrainian collectors under the name “Bolshaya Devochka” (Big Girl) or sometimes incorrectly as “Bonnie Magnificent”. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate. Outdoors it stays relatively compact (around 3 ft / 1 m), but in a greenhouse, it easily reaches 5.5 ft (1.7 … Read more
Quick Summary of Etual (Etoile) 🌍 Origin: A very popular heirloom in Eastern European collections. The name translates to “Star” in French (Étoile), perfectly matching its stunning ruffled shape. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (vining). It can be quite compact outdoors (around 1m / 3.2 ft) but will shoot up vigorously over 2m (6.5 ft) in … Read more