Heirloom Tomato Varieties & Reviews | Tomat-Pomidor
Honest reviews of global tomato varieties from a 15-year-old growers community.
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Krupnyi iz Khakasii (Large from Khakassia) – Real Siberian Heirloom. 🌍 Origin: A beloved family heirloom from the Askizsky District of the Republic of Khakassia (Siberia, Russia). The name literally translates to “Large from Khakassia”. It was widely popularized among collectors by Lyudmila Gladilova from Kazakhstan. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall). … 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): Italian Sweet 🌍 Origin: A classic heirloom variety originally from Italy, widely circulated among seed collectors for its outstanding taste. 🌿 Plant Habit: Vigorous indeterminate (tall) vines with Potato Leaf (PL) foliage. They grow exceptionally well in greenhouses, easily reaching over 6.5 feet (2 m). Performs best when pruned to 2 … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Ispanskaya Roza (Spanish Rose) 🌍 Origin: A Russian collector’s variety (noted to be circulated by N. Berezhnova). The name translates to “Spanish Rose” and is considered an unofficial or “working” name in the heirloom community. 🌿 Plant Habit: Semi-determinate. Mid-to-late season. It grows to around 3 to 4 feet (1-1.2 m) … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Izumrudnaya Grusha (Emerald Pear) 🌍 Origin: A Russian heirloom whose name translates to “Emerald Pear”. A very popular Green-When-Ripe (GWR) variety. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall). Typically grows to 6.5 – 10 feet (2-3 m). The foliage is somewhat light and well-behaved, not overly bushy, but also not the weeping “wispy” … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Iskry Plameni (Sparks of Flame) 🌍 Origin: An Eastern European heirloom variety. The name translates beautifully to “Sparks of Flame”, which perfectly describes its striking red and yellow striped appearance. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall), but generally has a compact footprint with slender vines. Grows to about 5 feet (1.5 m) … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Inzhirnye (Fig) 🌍 Origin: A popular Russian heirloom variety. The name “Inzhirnye” translates to “Fig” or “Fig-shaped”. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall). Sturdy vines that typically reach about 4.5 feet (1.4 m). Highly productive and sets fruit reliably even in less-than-ideal weather. 🍅 Fruit Characteristics: Stunning pink, deeply ribbed (pleated) beefsteaks. … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): L’Espagnol Lefebvres (Lefebvre’s Spanish) 🌍 Origin: Originally an heirloom from Spain, likely introduced to the broader seed saver community through France or Quebec given the French name. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indet. Mid-season. A tall but slender plant that sets fruit very reliably even in cold, wet summers. Needs adequate potassium to … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Ivan Ivanych 🌍 Origin: A Russian heirloom variety. The name “Ivan Ivanych” is a traditional and respectful Russian first name and patronymic combination. 🌿 Plant Habit: A mid-sized plant with potato leaf (PL) foliage. It is a very early season variety known for uniform ripening, meaning the fruits tend to flush … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Ibiza Elena’s Plum 🌍 Origin: A specific plum-shaped selection/variation of the known Ibiza variety, stabilized and circulated by a Russian grower named Elena. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indet. A highly productive workhorse with a long fruiting season. Growers recommend running it as a 3-stemmer for optimal yields. 🍅 Fruit Characteristics: Beautiful plum/paste … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Irish Liqueur 🌍 Origin: A Russian commercial green-when-ripe (GWR) variety. Initially released by seed companies like “Sortsemovosch” and “Uralskiy Dachnik”. While sometimes commercially labeled as an F1 hybrid, it has been widely circulated as a stable open-pollinated heirloom among growers. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indet. Sturdy and relatively compact for an indeterminate … Read more
📌 Quick Summary (TL;DR): Italian Stallion 🌍 Origin: Heirloom tomato known for its incredible productivity. It also has a yellow sister variety known as Italian Stallion Giallo. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall vine). A true workhorse that sets fruit reliably without dropping blossoms, even when grown to 2 or 3 main stems. 🍅 Fruit Characteristics: … Read more