With the elevated emphasis placed on herb growing due to the new tincturing skill, some people are being downright awful to others in the few public herb gardens- to the degree of stealing your herbs that you are actively tending right in front of you and leaving the plot a mess only to dash off to do it somewhere else! This happened to me several times in the last hour or so alone.
At the very least, re-plant what you take, and if someone is "standing guard" and tending, just ASK what's what.