My backyard for your gardening lessons

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Tough times lead to interesting new trends, and here in Los Angeles there appears to be an increase in homeowners who are opening their homes and yards to strangers for swim lessons, yoga instruction, organic gardening workshops and more. Let a swim instructor use your pool for lessons, for example, and your kid might get to join the class for free.

The arrangement however, is not always stress free. Homeowners have to deal with the unexpected arrival of pets, strangers who treat their yards like a public park and, in one instance, the surprise of a clothing-optional policy. Read more about people who swap their homes for services.

--Laura Randall

Top photo: Deborah Eden Tull, left, shows Andrea Johnson of Stevenson Ranch how to separate lettuce before planting during a spring gardening class in a Glassell Park yard.

Bottom photo: Linda Ivarie-Kaplan, floating, enjoys treatment from water massage therapist Davida Taurek in Ivarie-Kaplan’s pool in Calabasas.

Credits: Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times