Several weeks ago when we had snow I came out one evening and discovered a border of shrubs I had planted had several plants missing. There were 8 holes and one lone plant lying by the side of the road.

The next morning two of my neighbors came over to help me inspect. In the light of day we found each hole had a brown ring of dead grass, with a stream going back to the fence of a very problematic neighbor. Sure looked like someone had sprayed Roundup and then decided to finally take the plants.

The woman who lives next to me has been very contentious over the years. Not just with us but other neighbors as well. We just happen to live next to her. She has been caught trespassing on our property before and told to stop.

Value of plants was approx. $200. We did file a theft report with the police. This woman of course denied any knowledge. A few weeks later her husband,after a row with her, admitted to two others on my street that he took them under her order's.

The police told me not much can be done; no witnesses, hearsay admission. They did tell me to file a Non-harassment order" so that is what I'm going to do. This is supposed to give some "teeth" to keeping her off my property.

Has anyone out there had a similar experience? What did you do?

It's such a letdown after scrimping for months, planning just what to plant, etc., and then have someone do this.