Heirloom Tomato Varieties & Reviews | Tomat-Pomidor
Honest reviews of global tomato varieties from a 15-year-old growers community.
Quick Summary of Syzranskaya Pipochka 🌍 Origin: A treasured, historic Russian heirloom from the city of Syzran, known to be over 100 years old. The name translates to “Syzran Little Beak,” referring to its pointed shape. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall vining), mid-early season. The bush is powerful, highly vigorous, and completely disease-resistant. Growers recommend … Read more
Quick Summary of Red Hunter (Krasnyi Okhotnik) 🌍 Origin: A highly reliable, time-tested commercial Russian variety. 🌿 Plant Habit: Determinate, tree-type dwarf (stout bush). It grows very compact, no taller than 50-60 cm (20-24 inches), with strong, thick foliage. Excellent for outdoor growing. 🍅 Fruit Characteristics: Bright red, firm, barrel-shaped “blocky plums” weighing 80-90 g … Read more
Quick Summary of Rozovyi Klyk (Pink Fang) 🌍 Origin: A highly regarded Russian heirloom tomato originating from private breeder Yu. Petrov. 🌿 Plant Habit: A tall determinate. Grown outdoors or in containers, it reaches about 1 meter (3.3 ft). In a greenhouse, it can stretch slightly taller. According to the original breeder, this variety is … Read more
Quick Summary of Work Release Paste 🌍 Origin & “Lost in Translation” Story: This is a famous large Italian/US heirloom. However, when it was introduced to the Russian tomato community, the name was awkwardly auto-translated as “Rabochiy Vypusk Pasty” (which translates back literally as “Industrial Production of Macaroni”). The bizarre name caused a lot of … Read more
Quick Summary of Rozovyi Tyulpan (Pink Tulip) 🌍 Origin: A stunning collector’s variety of unknown exact origin, widely circulated among Russian and European tomato enthusiasts. Sometimes grown under the translated name “Tulip Pink”. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate and late-season. Reports on its growth habit vary: some growers note a wispy, fragile structure (up to 1.5m … Read more
Quick Summary of Rozovyi Dlinnyi (Minusinsk Long Pink) 🌍 Origin: An authentic Siberian heirloom from the Minusinsk region. Seeds were preserved in old newspaper rolls since the Soviet era by a gardener in Kazantsevo. It originally spread through the tomato community simply as “Long Pink” and was later dubbed “Minusinsk Pepper-shaped Pink” by growers. 🌿 … Read more
Quick Summary of Rio Grande 🌍 Origin: A world-famous commercial paste variety originally developed for hot climates, but widely adapted and heavily grown by Russian and Eastern European gardeners for winter canning. 🌿 Plant Habit: Determinate (bush). Grows compactly to about 70-90 cm (2.3 – 3 ft) tall. Excellent for open ground and field growing. … Read more
Quick Summary of Striped Roman (Rimskiy Polosatyi) 🌍 Origin: A famous American heirloom known in the Russian tomato community as “Rimskiy Polosatyi”. 🍅 The Great Debate (Striped vs. Speckled): This forum thread perfectly captures the classic confusion surrounding this variety. As noted by growers (and Tatiana’s TOMATObase), there are essentially two circulating lines: Striped Roman … Read more
Quick Summary of Andine Cornue Orange (Rog And Oranzhevyi) 🌍 Origin: An orange variant of the famous Andean/French heirloom (Cornue des Andes). In the Russian tomato community, it is affectionately known as “Rog And Oranzhevyi” (Horn of the Andes Orange) or “Andean Horned Orange”. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall), vigorous, and highly productive. Performs exceptionally … Read more
Quick Summary of Palenka F1 🌍 Origin: A commercial Russian F1 hybrid produced by the “Semco” (Семко) seed company. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall) and highly vigorous. It is strongly recommended for greenhouse growing (especially polycarbonate greenhouses). While the packet suggests pruning to 1 stem, many growers successfully train it to 3 stems with massive … Read more
Quick Summary of Palchiki (Little Fingers) 🌍 Origin: A classic Russian “family heirloom” (folk breeding) originating from the Rostov region. The original poster has maintained this variety in her family collection for over 20 years. The name Palchiki translates to “Little Fingers”. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall). Outdoors in open ground, it grows to about … Read more
Quick Summary of Pozzano F1 🌍 Origin: A commercial indeterminate hybrid bred by the famous Dutch seed company ENZA ZADEN BEHEER B.V. Highly sought after by professional and amateur growers alike. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate, tall (reaching 2-3 meters / 6.5-10 ft). Despite its height, growers note the plant is remarkably neat, well-foliated but not … Read more