Heirloom Tomato Varieties & Reviews | Tomat-Pomidor
Honest reviews of global tomato varieties from a 15-year-old growers community.
🍅 Quick take: Olympic Flame (Olimpiyskiy Ogon) is an indeterminate, late-season bicolor beefsteak. If there is one thing growers universally agree on, it’s the flavor: it is exceptionally sweet with a dense, jelly-like texture. However, it is equally notorious for being a stubbornly low yielder. Some growers struggle to get more than a few fruits … Read more
🍅 Quick take: Lyubimyi Malyshik (Favorite Baby) is a mid-season, indeterminate Russian family heirloom promoted heavily by seed vendor V. Kolyakov. The vendor claims it produces incredibly beautiful, sugary fruits up to 7 oz (200 g) with great late blight resistance and massive yields. However, real-world grower experience tells a different story: poor yields, constant … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Beauty King 🌍 Origin: A legendary modern heirloom bred by Brad Gates at Wild Boar Farms in California. It is a cross between Big Rainbow and Green Zebra. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall). Known for being a bit wimpy and spindly in the seedling stage, but it vigorously stretches to 6-6.5 … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Captain Lucky 🌍 Origin: A stunning modern heirloom cross stabilized by American breeder Millard Murdock. Known for its mesmerizing interior colors. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall) with Potato Leaf (PL) foliage. The vines tend to be somewhat wispy and sparse with foliage. Often tops out around 5.5 feet (1.7 m) in … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Donald F1 🌍 Origin: A commercial F1 hybrid variety. 🌿 Plant Habit: Determinate, staying very compact. Outdoors in open ground, it tops out at around 20 inches (0.5 m). 🍅 Fruit Characteristics: Bright red, perfectly round, and incredibly firm. It has a highly uniform, “commercial” appearance. 👅 Flavor & Use: Standard … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Bizon Chernyi (Black Bison) 🌍 Origin: A Russian commercial variety, distributed primarily by the “Poisk” seed company as part of their “Vkusnoteka” (Tasty Library) series. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate. A tall, very vigorous and powerful plant. Growers note it has a tendency to go vegetative (focusing on leaf growth rather than … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Coeur de Surpriz (Heart of Surpriz) 🌍 Origin: A fascinating French artisanal variety with a dramatic backstory. Originally developed by Madame Jacqueline Morel and named after her dog, “Surpriz”. The heart-shaped version (“Coeur de Surpriz”) is believed to be a strain/mutation discovered by Sébastien Berthier. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate, regular leaf. … Read more