Dear PoPville – People Steal Herbs?

Photo by PoPville flickr user caroline.angelo

“Dear PoPville,

Last night a window box of basil and cilantro plants were stolen out of our front yard in Petworth (Rock Creek Church Rd). Have you heard of this happening before to your other readers? Any tips on catching the crooks or avoiding this trouble in the future? Is there a rash of herb thieves on the loose? We’re going to install a motion sensor light, even though we had a bright light on in the front. Very strange they would want to steal them- don’t you think?”

As crazy as it sounds this happens every year in many neighborhoods. It seems arbitrary about where and what is stolen – herbs, flowers, chairs, packages etc. It even happens in Cleveland Park, there has been an epic discussion about a flower thief, last we heard:

As I was walking towards the State Department this morning, I was surprised to see a rather dirty, short man get off a bus (the L1) with a tremendous bouquet of hydrangeas. I am pretty sure that he is the same flower thief that others have seen. The flowers he was carrying were beautiful but looked like they came from a garden — the stems were not even and the blooms didn’t look commercially-grown and perfect.

Aside from a motion light – any other tips on how to deter herb (and other) thieves?