Heirloom Tomato Varieties & Reviews | Tomat-Pomidor
Honest reviews of global tomato varieties from a 15-year-old growers community.
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Dusya Zholtaya (Yellow Dusya) 🌍 Origin: A commercial variety originally released by Siberian Garden (SibSad). It was only on the market for a year or two before disappearing, but was kept alive by private seed collectors! 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate, but stays relatively short and compact. Usually tops out around 3.5-4 … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Domate Piramida 🌍 Origin: A rare Eastern European / Balkan heirloom. The name “Domate Piramida” suggests Bulgarian origins (“Domate” means Tomato in Bulgarian, and “Piramida” means Pyramid). 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate. A tall, vigorous plant that grows extremely well in a greenhouse environment. 🍅 Fruit Characteristics: Long, red, elongated “icicle” or … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Da Chilo 🌍 Origin: A massive heirloom variety from Italy. The name “Da Chilo” translates to “Weighing a kilo” (2.2 lbs), which perfectly describes its size potential! 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate. A highly vigorous, tall plant that thrives in a greenhouse environment when pruned to two main stems. Mid-season maturity. 🍅 … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Dyadya Stepa (Uncle Stepa) 🌍 Origin: A very popular commercial variety. It is famously named after “Uncle Stepa”, an extremely tall, lanky, good-natured policeman from a classic Soviet children’s poem. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate, mid-late season. The plant has a thin, vine-like, spindly stem and weeping foliage. 🍅 Fruit Characteristics: The … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Dieticheskiy Chempion (Dietary Champion) 🌍 Origin: A Ukrainian variety developed by the Institute of Irrigated Agriculture in Kherson. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate, tall, mid-season variety. Thrives in both greenhouses and open ground. 🍅 Fruit Characteristics: Oblate (flattened) beefsteaks weighing 8.8-12.3 oz (250-350 g). They ripen to a stunning dark purple/black-raspberry color. … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Dzhan (Jan) 🌍 Origin: A historic Russian heirloom bred by the famous Voronezh amateur breeder N.S. Bykhanov. He named it “Dzhan” (meaning “friend” or “soul” in Turkic languages) in honor of his friends and the legendary Soviet cosmonaut Vladimir Dzhanibekov. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate, medium vigor with somewhat pale green, regular … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Desert (Dessert) 🌍 Origin: A commercial variety famously released by the “Manul” agricultural company. “Desert” translates directly to “Dessert”, hinting at its sweet flavor. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall). An early-season, well-behaved plant that doesn’t aggressively take over the greenhouse. Highly productive. 🍅 Fruit Characteristics: Officially described as “very small,” but … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Dobrynya Nikitich 🌍 Origin: A Russian commercial variety. It is named after Dobrynya Nikitich, a famous, legendary bogatyr (knight/hero) from ancient Russian folklore known for his immense strength and size. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate, growing 5-6.5 feet (1.5-2 m) tall. It is recommended to top the plant after the 8th-10th truss … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Giannini 🌍 Origin: A rare heirloom variety with Italian roots, popularized in Eastern Europe by collector Valery Popenko. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall). It has a very flimsy, weeping “wispy” foliage structure, which is typical for many high-quality paste tomatoes. 🍅 Fruit Characteristics: Red, plum-shaped paste tomatoes with a distinct little … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Delta 264 🌍 Origin: A Russian commercial variety bred by the Central Siberian Botanical Garden and officially added to the Russian State Register in 1995. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate. Described officially as semi-spreading with medium foliage. Performs best in a greenhouse environment. 🍅 Fruit Characteristics: Smooth, glossy, firm red fruits. There … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): De Barao Kabardinskiy (Kabardian De Barao) 🌍 Origin: A very rare, old amateur “folk breeding” variety. The name references Kabardino-Balkaria, a republic in the North Caucasus region. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate. Produces tall, highly vigorous, and powerful vines. 🍅 Fruit Characteristics: Despite the “De Barao” name (which is typically a small … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Druzhba (Friendship) 🌍 Origin: A widely loved Eastern European heirloom. The word “Druzhba” translates to “Friendship”. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate. When grown outdoors in open ground, it typically reaches about 5.2-5.5 feet (1.6-1.7 m) in height. 🍅 Fruit Characteristics: Large, red beefsteaks that are round but slightly oblate (flattened) with mild … Read more