Heirloom Tomato Varieties & Reviews | Tomat-Pomidor
Honest reviews of global tomato varieties from a 15-year-old growers community.
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Gigant Krasnyi (Red Giant) 🌍 Origin: A classic Russian amateur heirloom variety. The name translates directly to “Red Giant.” 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate and highly vigorous. It grows very tall (easily exceeding 6.5 ft / 2 m) and features large, long, “weeping” or drooping foliage. The first blossom truss sets quite … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Giant of Siebenburgen 🌍 Origin: A historic European heirloom originating from the Siebenbürgen region (modern-day Transylvania, Romania). In Russia, it circulates as Gigant Zibenburgena. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall), reaching over 6.5 ft (2 m) inside a greenhouse. 🍅 Fruit Characteristics: Large, red, classic oxheart-shaped tomatoes. They are very meaty and … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Graffiti Pink 🌍 Origin: A commercial European variety. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall), but tends to be moderately sprawling and stays relatively manageable outdoors, reaching about 3.6 ft (1.1 m) in open ground. Regular leaf. 🍅 Fruit Characteristics: Small, apple-sized round/oblate fruits. Visually stunning: they have a pink/rose base with distinct … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Gusinoe Yaytso (Goose Egg) 🌍 Origin: A very popular commercial heirloom released by the Russian seed company Siberian Garden (SibSad). 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall), highly vigorous. It frequently exceeds 6.5 ft (2 m) in a greenhouse. Standout feature: It exhibits “wispy” or drooping foliage, which is common for large paste … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Gostinets 🌍 Origin: A Russian variety released as part of the “Vkusnoteka” (Tasty Collection) line. The name roughly translates to “A Little Gift” or “Treat”. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall), but growers report it being fairly manageable, reaching about 5 ft (1.5 m) in a greenhouse. Requires staking and pruning. 🍅 … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Gigant Svitera (Giant Sweater) 🌍 Origin: Claimed to be from the USA, but circulated in Russia under the translated name “Gigant Svitera”. It is highly likely a renamed or mistranslated classic American paste tomato. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall). Very vigorous and powerful grower that can easily reach the roof of … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Brown Flesh Jumbo 🌍 Origin: Originally from Canada. It was introduced to the RU heirloom community under the translated name Gigantskaya Korichnevaya Plot. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall), vigorous, and sun-loving. Outstanding heat tolerance! Even in extreme summer heat waves, it continues to set fruit without dropping blossoms. 🍅 Fruit Characteristics: … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Grightmire’s Pride 🌍 Origin: A famous heirloom originally from Yugoslavia. It was introduced to the North American heirloom tomato community by Fred Grightmire of Ohio, USA. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall), reaching up to 6.5 ft (2 m) in a greenhouse. It exhibits the classic oxheart “wispy” or weeping foliage (drooping … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): General Kornilov 🌍 Origin: Pink heirloom variety from Russia. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate. Can be kept to a moderate 4 ft (1.2 m) out in the open ground, but turns into an absolute monster “tree” in a greenhouse, easily shooting past 6.5 ft (2 m). Very vigorous. 🍅 Fruit Characteristics: Large … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Tarasenko Hybrid No. 2 🌍 Origin: A legendary Soviet-era variety developed by the famous amateur breeder Feodosiy Tarasenko (Sumy region, Ukraine) in the late 1980s. Note: Despite the name, this is a stabilized, open-pollinated heirloom, NOT an F1 hybrid! 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (very tall) and vigorous. Known for its massive, … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Gilbertie Paste 🌍 Origin: Heirloom paste tomato. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall). Forum members report great success growing it in a greenhouse when pruned to two stems. 🍅 Fruit Characteristics: Red, elongated “icicle” shape, weighing up to 5.3 oz (150 g). The fruits are incredibly dense, meaty, and have a high … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Calabrese Gigante 🌍 Origin: A fantastic heirloom tomato originating from the Calabria region in southern Italy. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall). Very productive and boasts a long harvest window, often producing well into the fall. 🍅 Fruit Characteristics: Deep red, slightly elongated (almost giant plum or pear-shaped) beefsteaks with light ribbing … Read more