I found out myself that when you give something away for free like I do on freecycle every now and then you have to be VERY SPECIFIC with people otherwise they will take advantage of you. For instance when I gove plants away I gave a very specific day and time I will be around otherwise I tell them don't bother to even answer the ad as will not even hold the plants for a few days. Sometimes I would be holding stuff for a week and they would never show and I could have given them away 10x over!

i gave a few things away like that this spring. The people were all fairly normal - but yeah, I was out there watching and offered to help just so I could be right there. One woman was great and gave me a ton of info on some plants I had and how to care for them. Her husband had a landscaping company shirt on and made quick work of removing a ton of stuff!

Another guy stayed and dug even through rain and was just putting roots and dirt right on the seats of his car! Even though I offered him some plastic bags.

people are crazy.

my husband hates when I do that kind of stuff because he's worried someone will come back and rob us or something.

I would never let a stranger come dig in my garden. I'd rather dig it out myself than risk some idiot being disrespectful. Clearly lots can go wrong, as you have now learned!

I have both given away and sold plants on Craigslist and Freecycle. I always correspond, talk on the phone, and make specific appointments with each person. I have also given away and sold MANY other items on Craigslist, from asphalt shingles to son's athletic equipment, and lots of office furniture.

Maybe I've been lucky, but I've met a variety of interesting and nice people. Have not yet met any weirdos at all, and certainly hope to avoid that.

The biggest hassle thus far has been with "no-shows". Even after talking on the phone, and making an appointment, an occasional person just doesn't show up.

No shows are notorious on Craigslist. DH and DS do a lot of buying and selling. They always say first one there with cash gets it and will not hold anything for anybody. One time DH sold a small tractor to a stranger and we met half way but usually people come to our house.

When I offerred free hostas on Freecycle, I told people they had to bring digging tools but probably wasn't specific enough. One woman came in dressy sandals with a small trowel. Fortunately she brought a male friend who borrowed my spade. It was a huge plant in very rocky soil (someone else had planted it in a lousy location).

In the future, I will not let a stranger dig in my garden unless it's an area with easy access. I have much more fun going to the NH plant swap or just giving to friends.

I had an awesome experience with a craigslist garden barter. I posted and offered 1/4 of any of my plants (maybe 30 different things) to someone who would come clean out the beds, weed and divide what was left after taking plants. This man drove an hour to get to my house, stayed two 10 hour days and was meticulous. He was thrilled as he was out of work and wanting to create a garden for his wife with the new-found free time but had no money. Then he came back to give me some of his plants and compost after he was done. Too bad he was nowhere to be found this spring.

The last post really made me smile. What a great guy doing all that for his wife to have a garden.

I've found some really helpful people on craigslist. One woman came to help take away some really tall grass early this spring, and I've invited her back since. She wants anything perennial and smaller than a bush, and is very handy and helpful. This garden has many things in need of thinning, so it works out well!

However, I'm quite careful; people who I will reply to need to seem to have actually read the post and know what they are doing, and I don't let people in the yard without me there and helping or at least watching.