Here is some info I found googling.

dwarf/Container

These tomatoes are popular for use in containers, hanging baskets and garden or patio locations where space is limited. Because more people now live where traditional vegetable gardening is not possible, container and patio gardens have become more popular. Their ornamental value is an added benefit and their fruit quality has recently been improved as well. They have fruit in red and some other colors and are not suitable for pruning (except the new Husky hybrids).

Tiny Tim (45 days to harvest; 1 inch; very dwarf, red cherry fruit; determinate)

Cherry Gold (45 days; 1 inch; golden version of Tiny Tim; determinate)

Red Robin (55 days; 1 inch; super-dwarf plant, 6 inches tall; mild taste; determinate)

Yellow Canary (55 days; 1 inch; similar to Red Robin, but yellow fruit; determinate)

Pixie Hybrid II (52 days; 2 ounces; compact dwarf plants; determinate)

Patio Hybrid (65 days; 3 ounces; strong dwarf plants, relatively large fruit, ideal container plant; determinate)

Small Fry (72 days; 1 inch; red, good in hanging baskets; determinate)

Husky Red Hybrid (68 days; 6 ounces; dwarf plant, large fruit; extended harvest; indeterminate; resistant to VF)

Husky Gold Hybrid (70 days; 6 ounces; AAS winner; same plant types as Red and Pink; gold fruit; indeterminate; resistant to VF)

Husky Pink Hybrid (72 days; 6 ounces; smooth pink fruit on same husky-type plant; indeterminate; resistant to VF)

I can understand you wanting to try growing inside, but doubt if you will be pleased with any tomatoes you might harvest. My guess is that they may taste like cardboard, and I would like to hear of the outcome later.

Best of luck.

Sue

Thanks for the list Sue. I have a few of those seeds too and will make attempt. I doubt I will be too happy with them either, but I have to give it a try. My 4 year old loves tomatoes too, and even likes the ones from the grocery store, so worse case scenario, he can put a little salt on the cardboard and enjoy himself. If they turn out decent, I will be able to curb my addiction over the winter :)

Heather

I've started a few indoor plants over the weekend. In case you're interested, here's my list:

Red Robin
Tiny Tim
Siberia
New Big Dwarf
Silvery Fir Tree

If all goes well, this should give me tomatoes ranging from tiny, to slicers for sandwitches. I don't expect the flavor to be anywhere near as good as summer tomatoes, but this may be the best I can hope for.

Solar John

Here is a link that might be useful: My Blog

I did plant tiny tim and silvery fir tree yesterday. I am going to order red robin seeds to go with it too. I also have new big dwarf seeds, Ill plant tonight. I decided on a few small varieities and a couple for the high ceilings in the back room. I also did Broad Ripple, Canabec Super, Kootenai, Latah, Maskabec, Northern Delight, Rainbow Cherry, Red Currant, Silvery Fir Tree, Taxi and Tiny Tim. Thanks so much for your list Solar John, I wish you luck as well. Hopefully we will both be fortunate.

Last November I started a tiny tim indoors. It was so neat to have a tomato growing during the middle of winter and it was so cute! I think it started blooming in February and I'm sure I had little green maters on it sometime in March, moved the plant outside in May, finally got ripe tomatoes in June. I had it under my kitchen windowsill and a grow light. I don't think that the light intensity was high enough to get the maters ripe. (Or perhaps it wasn't as warm as they needed? The kitchen is the warmest room in my house @ about 75º - 80º).
Anyway, I'd suggest making sure you have plenty of high light and some warmth for ripe indoor tomatoes. Check out the forum below for more information.
I know I won't be trying it again, since I have such poor natural light in the house and don't have the electrical needs to have enough light for them.
But, Good luck with yours! :)
Cathy

Here is a link that might be useful: Growing under Lights

I had some tomatoes last winter, but had trouble maintaining a suitable temperature in my sunroom. The bottom-warmer I used just didn't quite do the job.

I recently finished building a heating device that I hope will be more successful this winter. Basically, it's a box with an incandescent lighbulb and a fan. I've placed pvc pipes with holes every three inches around the perimiter of my plant stand. The fan blows heated air through the pipe, and therefore onto the plants. I'd like to add a thermostat, so that the heater doesn't run unless the temperature drops to a preset level. As I found out last year, it only takes one cold night to kill all of the plants.

John

Forget New Big Dwarf. My first tomato is almost 2 pounds. You won't get one indoors.

Red Robin on the other hand is great. It only grows 10-12 inches high, but puts out 3-4 pints of great cherry tomatoes.

And according to what I've read, you won't need fancy growlights to get ripe maters.

Thanks Barkeater.

In the past I've had good luck with Tiny Tim and Red Robin. Sub-arctic maxi produced some larger tomatoes, and I've grown some pretty good-sized Silvery Fir Tree tomatoes. I'm trying to find other varieties that will produce fairly large tomatoes in my sunroom this winter. While I don't expect a two-pound New Big Dwarf tomato, I'm hopeful that the plant will produce a nice-sized one. I have a couple other varieties I'm going to start this weekend as well.

John

Started Tiny Tim, Siberia, and Container Choice (put into my first attempt at homemade earthbox) a few weeks ago. Hope to get a least another month in my new HFGH before moving them inside.

Like solarjohn, I've also been trying to think of a way to keep indoor tomatoes warmer, since my house will be pretty chilly this winter. Instead of the box and fan idea, I was thinking of making a little greenhouse with 1x2 lumber and visquine. I was considering a light bulb for heat, but it would have to be pretty far from the plants and the plastic to avoid burning. Christmas lights, though, put off a nice warmth that would be well-distributed.

I hadn't really decided which plants to try, but with this thread I think I've decided on Silvery Fir, Siberia and Tiny Tim. I may grow Stupice, too.

I grew Tiny Tim, Red Robin, and a yellow dwarf cherry whose name escapes me at the moment, all under lights - 3? winters ago. They did exceptionally well. I have intended to repeat the experiment, but just have not. BTW - for tomatoes in December, the seeds should be started first week of August, so y'all are looking at January tomatoes.

I forgot to mention another variety; Micro-Tom. I believe that this is the smallest tomato plant available. To amuse relatives and visitors I put a sign next to it: World's Smallest Tomato Plant'.

It's interesting to see clusters of tomatoes on a plant that is less than 6-inches tall.

Solar John

Here is a link that might be useful: My Blog

Thanks everyone. I have started seeds of Red Robin, as well as Broad Ripple, Canabec Super, Kootenai, Latah, Maskabec, Northern Delight, Rainbow Cherry, Red Currant, Silvery Fir Tree, Taxi and Tiny Tim. I also started Gold Nugget, Totem and a couple others. Wish me luck...At least it will help offset the winter gardening blahs!

I'm looking to start a few tomato plants indoors for winter tomatoes. Thanks to all the previous information I've got a good idea when I'll see ripe tomatoes. It will be a fun learning experience. And maybe I'll get luck enough to get a ripe tomatoe or two before spring planting. Thanks!!

Last year Czech's Bush did very well for me. No BER or disease and more than a dozen tomatoes. My next closest plant had 4. This year I'm trying New Big Dwarf and Golden Dwarf Champion along with some sweet pepper varieties, including Chinese Giant, Quadrato D'Asti Rosso and Elephant's Ear. It'll be fun seeing what works out and what doesn't.

Jeff

Thanks to this and similar threads, I started some tomatoes for the winter around October 10th. I started
Microtom
Red Robin
Tiny Tim
Totum

The microtom are already producing fruit. They are still green, with the largest one being about a 1/2" in diameter.

The Red Robin and Tiny tim are getting ready to flower.

I'm growing them under ordinary flouresent lighting that I used last spring for seed starting, and most of them are now in 6" pots. They all look very healthy so far.

OK- who here can give some results of thier winter growing experiences?

Anyone had luck with these?

For years I have been growing a couple Red Robin plants in a sunny bay window that faces south. Always got nice plants and a lot of vine (tiny bush) ripened cherry sized tomatoes. I used no artificial lighting. I don't even own grow lights and I start my March seeds in that same window. Red R's get about 18 inches tall and 14 inches wide tops. I grew them in 8" containers.

Last year I tried growing the indeterminate Momotaro. I was surprised to see that I had very nice results! Quite a few nice juicy dark pink tomatoes that took me through winter. I just did a little pruning to keep the plant at 5' tall and not too wide. This year I am growing Momotaro again indoors. If you have a sunny south facing window there is no reason you can't be enjoying homegrowns year round...

Question for those folks growing under lights. How long do you keep the lights on?

OK, here's a pic of my Momotaro plant fighting for space with my wife's amaryllis plants in that sunny bay window. I hope to be able to enjoy many ripe Momo's all winter long like last year. Growing tomatoes indoors without any artificial lighting is certainly possible with a south facing window.

I have heard great things about a hybrid called Buffalo. It is suppose to grow well in low light and have excellent taste. The seeds are a bit tricky to find but I did run into a few places selling regular packs at regular prices. The variety is ususally sold to bigger operations. but you can find it sold for regular use.

A local farmer around here raves about it. He grows it indoors in greenhouse in the very early spring when there is low light and claims it is the best.

I could use some help with this same issue. I want to have some indoor tomato plants this year, and I was hoping to have some harvest either at Thanksgiving or Christmas.

Red Robin was my choice for this year (I've had no luck with anything larger indoors over winter), and I started my seeds on July 1 in a plastic greenhouse. They are now almost two inches tall (still skinny and young-looking).

It looks like we may still have warm weather and sun into early October here. Do I have a chance for Thanksgiving, or am I looking at Christmas?