Ruthie Mundell opens a door within the warehouse of the nonprofit thrift store known as Community Forklift and eagerly displays the donations of countless gardeners.

Hoses, weed whackers, clay pots, axes and lawn mowers all form a silent testimony to hours of yardwork. What are the stories behind the artifacts? Did some donors get too creaky and move to a condo? Did they find a new life in Texas? Did they accumulate too much stuff and decide to have a clear-out?

"Everyone seems to end up with five rakes," she says, casting an eye over at least that number of leaf rakes.