New research published in the journal Science and featured in last week's New York Times may shed some light on the reasons why you can't ever seem to find a tomato that tastes… like a tomato.

If your mom loves to garden—or if you’d like to help her get started—pick up a container or two of Ecosource’s Organic Grow Your Own Seedling Starter Kits for Mother’s Day.

Nine USDA-certified organic varieties are available for last-minute shoppers (ground, 2-day or overnight shipping):

1. Bell Pepper
2. Carrot
3. Corn
4. Cucumber
5. Eggplant
6. Heirloom Tomato
7. Sunflower
8. Watermelon
9. Zucchini

A Strawberry Kit is also available, but the seedlings are not organic.

Each kit ($15.99) contains instructions, an eco-friendly tray, high-quality soil, a reusable “greenhouse bag” and biodegradable seedling starter shells, all housed in a decorative container.

Users can start up to 10 seedlings and then transplant them into their gardens.

Ecosource founders Chad Callihan and Chuck Rose quit the corporate world and started the Decatur, GA-based company in 2006 to develop stylish, affordable and eco-friendly products.

“We’re not trying to be perfect, but we’re learning every day about how to make better choices for ourselves and the future of our children’s planet,” they state. “We hope that by sharing our experience, you’ll want to do the same.”

Chefs, gardeners and gourmets are passionate about organic heirloom tomatoes. Now, anyone can successfully grow them with hardy plants, a growing kit and just the right amount of guidance.

Windowbox.com is shipping organic heirloom tomato plants nationwide, with complete directions and a 100% guarantee. A single plant costs less than a pound of store-bought heirloom tomatoes and can produce 30 lbs. of tomatoes over the entire summer ($25.99 per 6-plant pack).

“Those mealy red things in the supermarket aren’t tomatoes,” says Windowbox CEO Ben Swett, a dedicated gardener. “Real tomatoes have full flavor and can look really weird, with their unusual colors and shapes.”

If you’re new to organic gardening, you may struggle when deciding which varieties to plant. Windowbox.com attempts to make life easy by offering three flagship collections:

• Flavor Kings (the best-tasting heirlooms)
• Windowbox Wonders (which thrive in containers)
• Candy Box (bright-colored and extra-sweet cherry tomatoes, which are fun to grow with children)

These all-in-one kits include extra-hardy plants, special tomato food, plant markers, and printed and online care instructions to ensure customer satisfaction.

To be considered an heirloom variety, a tomato must have been available for at least 50 years and must have a distinctive quality and traceable heritage. Heirlooms have other benefits: They’re good for you. Tomatoes are high in vitamins A and C, calcium, potassium and the powerful antioxidant lycopene, which has been linked to a reduced risk for gastric, prostate, ovarian and pancreatic cancer.