Pipo

“Pipo” reminds me of the Elf on the Shelf. It’s little and cute and likes cool weather. Pipo came into North America when it was introduced commercially by Tatiana’s TOMATObase Seeds in 2009, with the original seeds coming from Europe with no known country or origin. Pipo is a compact balcony-sized variety. The leaves are not rugose, so it is not the usual growth habit for a dwarf plant; however, it did stay quite small for me in a pickle bucket. The fruits are cocktail-sized red juicy gems with a fair amount of sweetness. The perfectly-shaped round fruits averaged 1 to 3 ounces, similar to the Campari variety. Pipo has been reported to grow extremely well by my northern-dwelling gardening forum friends, and I will also note that it is very early and set fruit vigorously until my temperatures really heated up. I recommend this variety as similar to Spunky Bird, but better for productivity in the north US and Canada than in the southern US.