Heirloom Tomato Varieties & Reviews | Tomat-Pomidor
Honest reviews of global tomato varieties from a 15-year-old growers community.
📌 Quick Summary: Kenigsberg (Königsberg) 🌍 Origin: A famous Russian commercial heirloom bred by amateur Siberian breeders and popularized by the Siberian Garden (SibSad) seed company. Named after the historical Prussian city of Königsberg (modern-day Kaliningrad). 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall). Reaches about 5 to 6 feet (1.5-1.8 m). It is bred to thrive in … Read more
📌 Quick Summary: Kimmeriec (Cimmerian) 🌍 Origin: A Russian commercial variety. The name translates to “Cimmerian” (referencing the ancient nomadic Indo-European people). 🌿 Plant Habit: Determinate (bush). Very compact, topping out around 24 to 28 inches (60-70 cm). Needs plenty of lateral space and strong staking due to the massive weight of the fruit. Best … Read more
📌 Quick Summary: Cornabel F1 Cornabel F1 is a highly famous French hybrid (bred by Vilmorin) that has taken the Russian gardening community by storm. But is it actually worth buying expensive F1 seeds every year? 🌍 Origin: A commercial French F1 hybrid shaped like a horn (hence the “Corn” in Cornabel). It was bred … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Koster 🌍 Origin: A popular Russian commercial heirloom variety. The name translates to “Campfire” or “Bonfire”. Popularized by the Russian seed vendor Valery Medvedev. 🌿 Plant Habit: Determinate (bush). Very compact and stocky, typically staying between 16 to 27 inches (40-70 cm) tall. Does exceptionally well outdoors but can drop blossoms … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Calcutta (Kalkutta) 🌍 Origin: Sourced and popularized by Russian seed collector V. Redko. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall), reaching over 8 feet (2.5 m) in a greenhouse. Like many heart and paste varieties, it has long, droopy, “wispy” foliage that often looks wilted even when perfectly watered. It handles heat well … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Italiansky Delikates (Italian Delicacy) 🌍 Origin: Sourced from Eastern European seed swaps, specifically popularized by the legendary Ukrainian private seed collector V.F. Siray. The name translates to “Italian Delicacy”. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall). Grows up to 6.5 feet (2 m) outdoors. It has very short internodes, meaning the plant gets … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Izumrudnye (Emeralds) 🌍 Origin: Grown from seeds originally sourced from China. The Russian working name translates to “Emeralds”. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate. A very vigorous plant that throws a lot of suckers, but uniquely, it sets fruit very well on those unpruned suckers. It has distinctive, heavily serrated foliage. 🍅 Fruit … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Verace 🌍 Origin: Heirloom from Italy. It is famously grown there specifically to make a traditional, extremely thick sauce of the exact same name. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indet. A very tall and vigorous vine that easily reaches 6.5 feet (2 m) and keeps climbing. 🍅 Fruit Characteristics: Massive crimson-red beefsteaks. These … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Zolotoe Runo (Golden Fleece) 🌍 Origin: A commercial Russian early-season variety popularized by seed companies like “Poisk” and “Gavrish”. The name translates to “Golden Fleece”. 🌿 Plant Habit: Determinate (bush). Typically grows about 20-32 inches (50-80 cm) outdoors, though it can stretch significantly taller if grown in a greenhouse. Requires minimal … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Zoloto Kolchaka (Kolchak’s Gold) 🌍 Origin: A prolific Russian heirloom variety named after a famous historical legend surrounding the lost gold of the Russian Empire. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate. A very vigorous, powerful plant that sets heavy clusters of fruit and requires excellent staking to prevent branches from snapping under the … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Yellow Fire 🌍 Origin: A beautiful striped novelty variety bred by the legendary American tomato breeder Tom Wagner (famous for creating the Green Zebra). 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall), though some growers note it can occasionally terminate its own growth early. A strong bush that performs very well both outdoors (reaching … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Zhigalo (Gigolo) 🌍 Origin: A commercial variety released by the Russian seed company “Biotechnica”. Known for its provocative name (Gigolo) due to its distinct, elongated, phallic shape. 🌿 Plant Habit: Compact determinate (tree-type dwarf). Usually grows to about 16-24 inches (40-60 cm). Has thick, rugose foliage that looks like a little … Read more