Heirloom Tomato Varieties & Reviews | Tomat-Pomidor
Honest reviews of global tomato varieties from a 15-year-old growers community.
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Gogosha 🌍 Origin: A highly regarded old heirloom variety from Ukraine. It made its way into the North American seed-saving community (SSE) years ago and is often compared favorably to other great potato-leaf pinks like Brandywine. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall) and vigorous. It features classic Potato Leaf (PL) foliage. Grows … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Gigantskaya Roza (Giant Rose) 🌍 Origin: A commercial variety from the Russian seed market. The name translates to “Giant Rose”. 🌿 Plant Habit: Determinate, stout “tree-type” bush. It has thick, strong main stems and grows to about 3-3.3 ft (90-100 cm) tall. Highly vigorous and disease-resistant. 🍅 Fruit Characteristics: Stunningly beautiful! … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Mr. Underwood’s Pink German Giant 🌍 Origin: A fantastic heirloom variety originating from the USA, tracing back to German roots. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall). Grows to about 5.6 ft (1.7 m) in a greenhouse. Known for being a very reliable setter that doesn’t drop blossoms or skip trusses. 🍅 Fruit … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Goliath 🌍 Origin: An old, highly productive heirloom originating from the USA. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall). The plant is an absolute monster—growers describe it as being “built like a tree.” It grows very tall (easily over 6.5 ft / 2 m) and requires heavy-duty staking, as single trusses can weigh … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Vasilina 🌍 Origin: A Russian/Ukrainian collector’s variety. In this thread, one of the seed sources is the well-known Ukrainian breeder and collector Aleksey Kulik. The name “Vasilina” is a traditional Slavic female name. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall). Out in the open ground, it reached about 4 feet (1.2 m), but … 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): Vechnaya Lyubov (Eternal Love) 🌍 Origin: A beautiful and highly sought-after variety popularized by the famous Ukrainian tomato collector Aleksey Kulik. The name translates romantically to “Eternal Love”. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate with Regular Leaf (RL) foliage. It is very adaptable: out in the open ground, it behaves almost like a … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Vostochnaya Pyshka (Eastern Pyshka) 🌍 Origin: A Russian commercial/heirloom variety. The name translates to “Eastern Pyshka” (a pyshka is a plump doughnut, often used to describe something very plump, round, and meaty). It was popularized by Russian seed collector V. Redko. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall). Growers note this plant is … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Vanskiy Rozovyi (Vani Pink) 🌍 Origin: Heirloom tomato originating from the Vani district in the country of Georgia (Caucasus region). It was heavily popularized among collectors by seed vendor Dmitry Gusev. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall). The plant is described as sturdy and robust, but not overly aggressive or leafy. It … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Bulgarian Wine Giant 🌍 Origin: A highly prized heirloom variety with roots in Bulgaria, popularized among Russian seed collectors (like V. Redko). The original name is Vinnyi Bolgarskiy Velikan. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall). Very vigorous vines that can easily reach 10 ft (3 m) in a greenhouse, often draped over … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Vinson (Vinson Watts) 🌍 Origin & Name Confusion: This variety circulates in Eastern Europe simply as “Vinson”. However, based on the description (large pink beefsteaks with Potato Leaf foliage), it is almost certainly the legendary American heirloom Vinson Watts, brought over and shortened in translation. Vinson Watts is a famous heirloom … Read more
📌 Quick Summary: Granddaughter’s Joy 🌱 Plant Habit: A powerful, tall-growing indeterminate vine with thick stems and dense foliage. Requires sturdy staking or caging to support the massive fruit weight. 🍅 Fruit & Yield: Produces giant, flat-round (oblate) pink beefsteak tomatoes. Average fruits easily weigh 14–25 oz (400-700g), with some giants reaching up to 2.2 … Read more