If you have a green thumb garden and a low end budget, the GardenWeb plant exchange is a great place to spend a rainy afternoon. Peruse the listings for the exact plant you're looking for, or browse for something that might fill a shady spot. Once you find something, see what the person is looking to trade for and if you have it to offer, send an email. If not, sometimes people are willing to send the plants for postage.
http://forums2.gardenweb.com/forums/explant/
Other sites:
http://www.plantswap.net/index.php?page=introduction-plant-swap
http://www.tradeaplant.com/Home/
Freecycle:
Forget about bulk trash day, someone on Freecycle will want what you're getting rid of. The non-profit Freecycle Network was founded in 2003 to promote waste reduction in Tucson, Arizona and help save desert landscape from being taken over by landfills. Today it's made up of 4,775 groups with 7,059,000 members across the globe. The idea is to sustain a free cycle of giving which keeps the stuff out of landfills. You join a local community, for free, and start posting stuff you want to get rid of. The only rules are everything posted must be free, legal, and appropriate for all ages. Most people post items like computer equipment, electrical appliances, leftover building supplies, furniture and other household goods. You can also look for items you need, just ask for it. You never know!
Another site:
http://www.swapathome.com/
Electronics:
If you're really hankering for that new iPod Touch but can't justify it since your old iPod still works perfectly fine, saunter over to Gazelle. They'll give you cash for your unwanted gadgets. Once you enter the model, condition and other info about the device, the site makes an offer online and sends out a box with prepaid shipping included for mailing. If they think they can't resell it, they'll offer to take it from you and properly recycle it. They deal mostly in cell phones, mp3 players, laptops, or other gadgets that are likely to wind up in either a kitchen drawer or a landfill.
Book Swapping:
No room in the house to save all those books you've finished? And you really want to read the next James Patterson book? Swap your books online. If you don't mind reading a book that's not crisp and pristine, join a book-swapping site like Paperbackswap. Most are free to join and can save you lots of money. You trade your old books for new ones and depending on the rules of the particular site, pay only postage.
Another site:
http://www.swaptree.com/
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