Venus of Willendorf

Solanum lycopersicum

A Cicada Seeds original! This is an incredibly tasty tomato that's really sweet and umami, and gets almost spiced notes when fully ripe. Vigorous plants bear large clusters of long cherry tomatoes that look like green icicles. Wait for the tomatoes to turn slightly yellow with translucent skin for sweetest flavour.

I showed these tomatoes to my friend Evann a few years ago, and she noted how the curvy shape reminded her of the Venus of Willendorf, a bodacious Paleolithic female figurine found in a cave in Austria in 1908. I loved that comparison, and the name stuck!

A few years ago I noticed one plant in my Green Grape tomato patch with pointy fruit. I saved seeds and grew them out the following year, and all of them were exactly the same, which was surprising, since usually in the second generation after a cross the traits start to segregate. I repeated the process the following year and they were all uniform again! Finally in 2025 I did a big grow out at our lease site to produce seed. Because of the instant uniformity I think that this variety is a mutation, not an accidental cross as I first suspected. Pretty lucky!

Please note that in 2025 I had cracking on many of the fruits, but I think this is probably due to a watering issue, as I didn't have issues with cracking in past years at my home site.

Please let us know your feedback!

I am in the process of pledging this variety to the Open Source Seed Initiative (OSSI).

Growing Instructions

Start indoors 6-8 weeks before planting out date. In southwestern BC, I plant mid-March for planting out mid-May. Seeds benefit from bottom heat when germinating. Grow in full sun. Stake plants with a tomato cage, trellis, or wires. Plants can grow 6+ feet tall depending how you prune and train them. Tomatoes will turn slightly yellow with clear skin when fully ripe. It can be hard to tell until you get the hang of it. I recommend harvesting when tomatoes are slightly soft to the touch (when they “give” a little when gently squeezed with your fingers).. 

Indeterminate

OSSI pledged variety. For more info about our involvement with OSSI see here.

You have the freedom to use these OSSI-Pledged seeds in any way you choose. In return, you pledge not to restrict others’ use of these seeds or their derivatives by patents or other means, and to include this Pledge with any transfer of these seeds or their derivatives.