Heirloom Tomato Varieties & Reviews | Tomat-Pomidor
Honest reviews of global tomato varieties from a 15-year-old growers community.
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Church 🌍 Origin: A massive American heirloom from the Church family in Hot Springs, Virginia. It was first introduced to the wider tomato community by the legendary collector Chuck Wyatt. In Russian collections, it is frequently traded under the direct translation “Церковь” (Tserkov). 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate, regular leaf. A very … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Corazon de Huesca 🌍 Origin: A magnificent old heirloom variety from the Huesca province in the Aragon region of Spain. The name translates to “Heart of Huesca”. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall). Grows very well and produces reliably in greenhouse conditions. 🍅 Fruit Characteristics: Beautiful, massive pink heart-shaped tomatoes (oxhearts). They … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Cuor di Bue Cavallino Tre Porti 🌍 Origin: A magnificent family heirloom from Italy. Named after Cavallino-Treporti, a picturesque coastal peninsula in the Province of Venice. The name translates to “Oxheart of Cavallino Treporti”. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall) and mid-season. Grower Note: The plant habit is actually quite atypical for … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Cuore Antico di Aqui Terme 🌍 Origin: An outstanding family heirloom from Italy. The name translates to “Ancient Heart of Acqui Terme”. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall), mid-late season. The plants are vigorous with sturdy, thick main stems. Grower Warning: Avoid overfeeding with nitrogen early on, or the plant will prioritize … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Curtis Cheek 🌍 Origin: A highly prized heirloom oxheart variety from the USA. It is named after the American grower, Curtis Cheek, who cultivated and popularized this fantastic giant tomato among heirloom collectors. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall). An incredibly vigorous and powerful plant. Standout feature: It is an early-season variety, … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR) 🌍 Origin: A productive heirloom beefsteak variety. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall). Proves to be exceptionally hardy and performs wonderfully when grown outdoors in open ground. 🍅 Fruit Characteristics: Large, classic beefsteak-type tomatoes with a bright, vibrant color. Unlike some beefsteaks that are dry and dense, this variety is wonderfully juicy. … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR) 🌍 Origin: A stunning, highly regarded heirloom tomato variety. At least one of the prominent European growers in this thread sourced their seeds directly from Germany. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate, mid-season. Features beautiful Potato Leaf (PL) foliage. Grows exceptionally well in greenhouses in cooler northern climates. 🍅 Fruit Characteristics: Large beefsteaks … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR) 🌍 Origin: An old heirloom variety originating from Japan. It is also widely known among collectors as Barlow Japanese. One of the strains reviewed here was sourced via a seed swap from Slovenia. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate, mid-season. Features beautiful Potato Leaf (PL) foliage. 🍅 Fruit Characteristics: Large, oblate (flat-round) pink … Read more
Quick Summary of Black Cherry 🌍 Origin & History: Bred by the late Vince Sapp of TomatoFest (Florida, USA) and released in 2003. It made history as the very first truly “black” cherry tomato on the market. Vince managed to capture the rich, smoky, complex flavor profile of large dark Russian heirlooms and pack it … Read more
Quick Summary of Black Mountain Pink 🌍 Origin: A massive old heirloom tomato originating from Kentucky, USA. Highly prized by Russian collectors who often translate the name to “Chernogorskiy” or “Pink from Black Mountain”. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate, vigorous, and tall. Growers note that it can be a bit slow to start in the spring … Read more
Quick Summary of Bill Bean Select 🌍 Origin: A fantastic American heirloom variety. Named after the grower (Bill Bean), it has become a staple among collectors who are chasing both giant fruit size and extreme productivity. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate, mid-early. A very vigorous and tall vine that produces fruit relentlessly right up until the … Read more
Quick Summary of Bigly 🌍 Origin: A stunning striped orange variety closely associated with the lines bred by Fred Hempel (Artisan Seeds), sharing many characteristics with Orange Jazz. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate, tall, and mid-season. Known to be highly productive. 🍅 Fruit Characteristics: Massive orange beefsteaks with plump shoulders and light yellow stripes. Fruits are … Read more