Quick Summary of Tigrovyi (Tiger)
- 🌍 Origin: A commercial Russian variety introduced by the “Gavrish” seed company. The name translates simply to “Tiger”.
- 🌿 Plant Habit (Variable Genetics): Officially listed as growing up to 1.5 meters (5 ft). However, grower reports vary wildly. Some report it acting as a semi-determinate (where the main stem self-tops/terminates after a few trusses), while others report it growing as a slender, true indeterminate up to 1.7m (5.5 ft).
- 🍅 Fruit Characteristics: Very striking, cocktail-sized round tomatoes weighing 30-50g (1-1.7 oz). They have a bright red base heavily striped with golden-yellow.
- 👅 Flavor & Texture: The taste leans heavily toward the tart/acidic side rather than sweet. It has large seed cavities and a very firm, tough skin that does not peel easily.
- 🎯 Best Uses: Because of its tough skin and acidic bite, it is better suited for whole-fruit canning or adding visual pop to a salad, rather than gourmet fresh eating.
- ⏳ Maturity: Highly variable depending on the seed batch and conditions. Some growers harvested their first ripe fruits very early (early July), while others noted it as a mid-late season variety (ripening in August).
“Mid-season (110-120 days from germination to fruiting) variety, intended for growing in open ground, film tunnels, and greenhouses. The plant is mid-sized, up to 150 cm tall, requires staking. Fruits are round, weighing 30-50 g. The fruit color is unusual – bright red with yellow stripes. Ideal for salads, canning, and freezing.”
Seeds were from Gavrish.
(Seed packet description posted above)
I grew it in the greenhouse. It wasn’t overly tall; mine stayed under 1.5 m (5 ft). I pruned it to 2 stems, and one of those stems actually self-topped (terminated its growth) right after the 2nd truss. The fruit trusses were complex (multi-branching). The tomatoes were among the very first to ripen in the greenhouse—we started eating them in early July.
My Tigrovyi. Indeterminate, grew up to 170cm (5.5 ft) in the greenhouse, and 150cm (5 ft) in open ground. The bush is slender. The trusses were simple, each having 5-7 round red fruits with yellow stripes. The taste is quite tart/acidic, and the skin is tough and doesn’t peel away from the flesh easily. The seed cavities are large. Mid-late season; it started ripening in August.
