Heirloom Tomato Varieties & Reviews | Tomat-Pomidor
Honest reviews of global tomato varieties from a 15-year-old growers community.
🍅 Quick take: Homer’s German Oxheart is an indeterminate, late-season red oxheart. It produces large, slightly ribbed hearts with very few seeds and dense, buttery flesh. Growers note that while it isn’t an extremely heavy producer (averaging around 8 fruits per plant), the sheer size—most weighing around 14 oz (400 g)—and excellent, aromatic flavor make … Read more
🍅 Quick take: Great White is a mid-season, indeterminate heirloom that produces massive, oblate white fruits with a delicate pale yellow hue and sometimes a pinkish blush. Growers highlight its extremely mild, low-acid flavor, which some find incredibly sweet and delicious, while others find a bit bland compared to stronger-tasting varieties. It is a vigorous, … Read more
🍅 Quick take: George Detsikas’ Italian Red is an indeterminate heirloom that originated in Italy and was preserved by George Detsikas for 25 years. Growers rave about its outstanding, intense old-fashioned flavor and sweet, meaty, tender flesh. Despite its large size, it ripens surprisingly early, even in cold climates like Siberia. The only noted drawback … Read more
🍅 Quick take: Giganta Zenta Semi (Giant Seedless) is an indeterminate, mid-season Italian heirloom that produces large, heavy red beefsteaks. The name is likely a variation of the Italian Gigante Senza Semi, which perfectly describes its incredibly meaty, low-seed flesh. Growers here praise its solid yields and well-balanced, old-fashioned tomato flavor completely free of fruity … Read more
🍅 Quick take: Orlinyi Klyuv (Eagle’s Beak) is a famous commercial Russian heirloom from Siberian Garden (SibSad). It is an indeterminate, early-to-mid season pink heart/beak-shaped tomato. Like many classic oxhearts, it has a very spindly, wispy (“weeping”) foliage habit that looks frail but pumps out massive yields of large fruits up to 1.3 lbs (600 … Read more
🍅 Quick take: Landshuter Riese is an indeterminate German heirloom that produces massive, incredibly tender pink oxhearts. Originally from Lower Bavaria and popularized by legendary seed collector Reinhard Kraft, this tall vine is praised for its long harvest window, excellent disease resistance, and nearly seedless, sweet flesh. While it can be a bit slow to … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Diplomat 🌍 Origin: A Russian variety popularized by the famous Siberian seed collector, Tamara Yaschenko. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall). A very strong, vigorous vine that performs exceptionally well outdoors in open ground. 🍅 Fruit Characteristics: Large to extra-large red beefsteaks. They are very meaty and juicy. 👅 Flavor & Use: … 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): 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): Vodoley (Aquarius) 🌍 Origin: A commercial variety from the Russian seed company “Siberian Garden” (SibSad). Often sold under the name “Sozvezdie Vodoley” (Constellation Aquarius) or simply “Vodoley” (Aquarius). 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall). It has Potato Leaf (PL) foliage. It is highly recommended for greenhouse growing, where it can easily reach … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Hungarian Heart Shaped 🌍 Origin: A classic heirloom variety. Judging by the name and characteristics, it belongs to the famous family of Hungarian pink oxhearts. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall). It matures surprisingly early for such a large tomato. It grows well both in a greenhouse and out in the open … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Hungarian Oval 🌍 Origin: A well-known international heirloom variety. In this thread, seeds were sourced from the famous Russian collector V. Redko. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate. Unlike many wispy oxheart varieties, this one has strong, vigorous vines. It produces heavily and responds well to being pruned to 2 main stems in … Read more