Lisa Fitzgerald’s arms were full of green as she hugged pots of bachelor buttons, wild geranium and columbine.

Her mother, Letha Pease, trailed behind her, carrying her own bag of plants. 

The pair had dug them up from their gardens earlier that morning. 

“I thought it would be fun to swap for something we didn’t have,” Fitzgerald said. 

The gardening swap was bustling at the South Portland Community Center on a rainy Thursday evening, a three-hour opportunity for people to drop off seeds, soil, plants and tools and browse through what others brought. 

Fitzgerald and Pease picked out matching button flower plants. “I hope this is a pretty flower,” Pease said.

They also swapped gardening tips. Someone asked Fitzgerald how to care for the wild geraniums she brought.  

“They’re half sun, half shade,” she said. She recommended growing the white flowers in a restricted area. “They really take over.”

The three tables set up in a horseshoe filled and emptied with different pots and plants throughout the event. There were dozens of vines of hops sticking out of a gallon plastic bag. Iris clumps were tangled in a black pot. Someone brought dozens of seeds. 

The city’s sustainability and parks and recreation departments have been collaborating on a swap series since last fall, encouraging community members to find another home for their unwanted items. Anything that isn’t claimed is transported to the swap shop or donated to local organizations. 

The first swap last August was back to school-themed. Some families came with duffel bags and left with a new wardrobe for their children, according to Jenna Martyn-Fisher, a recreation coordinator. The leftover donations were brought to Maine Needs. It was a huge success, inspiring more themed swaps, Martyn-Fisher said. 

When the weather started to get chilly, they hosted a cozy themed swap with books, craft supplies and puzzles. Around the holidays, they hosted a Christmas regifting swap so children could shop for gifts for their parents. 

“We try to find new homes for things,” Martyn-Fisher. “Unless they’re beyond repair.” 

The next swap will be on June 11, with a summer fun them. Sports gear, pool floats and toys, yard games, beach gear and kites will be accepted.

The swap series will continue into the fall. Martyn-Fisher wants to host a Halloween costume swap. 

“Everyone uses the costumes one time,” she said. “What do you do with it after that?”

Residents are excited about the opportunity to shop sustainably within the city. 

“The swaps are a source of community,” said Karen Blanchard-McIntosh. “And I thought ‘Maybe I’ll get something else.’”

She brought a potted plant, seeds and soil and left hops, a hosta, iris and bamboo. 

Her mother, a lifelong gardener, is good at taking care of irises, she said. 

When they lived near the highway in Portland on Washington Avenue, she had loam and manure delivered to make the soil as fertile as possible. 

Blanchard-McIntosh didn’t necessarily inherit her mother’s gardening abilities, but she did inherit her enthusiasm. 

“I might have a brown thumb, but I keep trying,” she said, carrying her bag of treasures.