I also staple the to/from note (with a list of the plants I'm giving) to a bag, which holds the plant(s). Like Jan said, it makes things much easier both at the swap and when the person gets home and is going over everything received.

Hmm, am I human?

Not that I mind doing so, but just wondering - put a sign on my van even if I don't have any pre-arranged swaps? I'm a complete newbie - just refound this site about 2 weeks ago.

"put a sign on my van even if I don't have any pre-arranged swaps? "

I'd say yeah--because that way you can direct someone to your vehicle to either take or drop off plants if you're not right there. Ya know: "Yes, I have some irises in the back of my car--the blue Camry. Go and take some! Oh wait. There are 4 blue Camrys here.....OK--the one with my GW name on it!"

This is from the FAQ. I was going to delete the line about every swap being cold and rainy, but the forecast as of today is for rain on Friday night. We'll see. Appropriate dress may be tank top and flip flops.

chrisMD

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**More Free Advice: Helpful Hints for the Day of the Swap**

1. Sign in with the swap organizer. If you need to find someone, check the sign-in list to see if they've arrived.

2. Wear a nametag. Put your Gardenweb name on it, and your real name if you want. Remember - you know what you look like but we don't, and our mental image of you is usually quite different from reality.

3. Spouses, significant others, children and other pets should also get a nametag "John, DH of ChrisMD" or whatever so we know who they belong to. That's also how we know who they aren't.

4. Dress appropriately. Every Maryland swap (fall and spring) has been rainy, grey and cold. You'll be outdoors for 3 hours so wear clothes that can get muddy and waterproof shoes. Eat lots of brownies to keep your body temperature up. Dress the spouses, significant others, children and other pets too so you don't have to listen to "Can we leave now?" for three hours. Feed them lots of brownies - chocolate is a sedative.

5. Bring a piece of paper and label your car with your Gardenweb name. We usually park nose-in and have the trunks open so you can just tape the car's "name-tag" to the top of the open trunk. This sounds really dumb but believe me it helps tremendously in sorting out who is who.

6. Label your plants, either ahead of time, or bring markers to the swap for those who don't play 'name that plant' too well. Cynthia keeps plant labels by the PC and as she agrees to prearranged trades, marks one side of the label with the plant name and the other side with the recipient's name. It also makes it easier for her to sort everything the night before the swap. Clean Popsicle sticks are cheap and make good labels.

7. If you have special trades, presort out each recipient's goodies as you fill your car. ChrisMD puts each recipient's together in a paper grocery bag, labels the bag with the Gardenweb name of the recipient, and leaves it next to her car. That way, people can find her car and find their bag of goodies even if she is not standing right there. This also saves carrying plants from car to car looking for trading partners. When you have a lot of trades, this is critical to YOUR enjoyment of the swap.

8. Remember, a lot of times trading is not directly one-to-one. A gives to B who gives to C who gives to A. There's plenty to go around. There's going to be a LOT of stuff coming to the swap and it's all going to have to leave with someone. The only traders who leave disappointed are the ones who insisted on one-to-one even-steven trades.

9. If you're a newbie and you see something that's new to you, ask what it is. We're happy to share our experience, and our hostas and our physostegias and our rudbeckias....

10. Please come at the opening time if possible and expect to stay for a while. You'll need that long if you plan on talking to EVERYONE. Plus, we have all those brownie breaks.

11. Free for all is after lunch. Anything not traded or gifted before lunch must be taken home by anyone who even looks at it. If you ask a question, you get two.

12. If the police show up (they usually do) do not offer them Cleome. Offer them brownies.

13. Remember to HAVE A GREAT TIME!

Hi All: We'll have signs at Rt. 198 that say SWAP. Then just go up the street, keep going, and park. Please drive down the grass path to the barn for parking, last year we had a lot of cars. We have mowed the field for parking. In front of the house (under the overhang) are some tables for food and utensils. We have one, and only one, gas grill. We'll have a microwave to warm stuff. If it rains we'll eat inside. Last year we had everything except the swap itlself inside and the house was just too full so let's spread out just a little. Otherwise, let's have great company, great fun, and hopefully great weather.