HARDY PLANTS FOR YEAR-ROUND CONTAINERS

Standard Weeping Pussy Willow

For those of you who have deck or balcony gardens, and your numbers are rapidly increasing in Chicago and other large cities in Zone 5, your work is much more difficult than it is for the rest of us .

Your first and foremost consideration is containers that will overwinter and can handle the freezing and thawing cycle . This eliminates ceramic or clay pots, and glazed pottery. I know, I know, they're gorgeous but short-lived if you are to overwinter plants in them. Containers made of cedar are the best rot and moisture-resistant. Those inexpensive large half whiskey barrels will last for years. Concrete planters are strong, but heavy in large sizes and not easily moved about. High quality polyurethane , colored to look like Terra Cotta, is another good choice.

Once you've selected your container, and, I must emphasize the larger the better because the more soil you have the more likely the plant is to survive.

Begin by selecting small trees . The half whiskey barrel is large enough to plant dwarf standards ( standards are trees or shrubs with a weeping or pendulous habit above a straight trunk ) such as Weeping Pussywillow, Weeping Crabapple, Weeping Cherry, Dwarf Korean Lilac and Weeping Peashrub. For a bare wall an Ornamental Espalier, a horizontally trained branching tree, such as a pear or apple is very attractive in a sunny spot.

Two other hardy standards are Rose of Sharon and Mulberry.

Korean Dwarf Lilac Standard

ASK CAROLYN : READER QUESTION

Missy writes : I would like to garden my parkway and plant flowers. I would start in the middle with tall grass. I have to leave a space next to the curb . Anyone have info on what to use or suggest a garden design for it ?

Your first consideration should be the soil in the parkway, which is usually very compacted and deplete of nutrients. In addition, do you have any large trees on the parkway ? If so, planting under them could be a problem due to their extensive root system.

If you have no large trees to deal with, then your first step, after removing the grass would be to apply compost and manure which can be purchased ( as a combo ) at most garden centers or big box stores.

If you wish to plant tall ornamental grasses in the center ( an excellent idea in my opinion )how much space do you have left that needs planting and what do you want -color, or something that would be green year round ( evergreen shrubs, etc.?) Knock Out, the long-blooming rose shrub
( June-November ) would be a great choice and other long-blooming perennials : Blackeyed Susan, Sedum ( for Fall interest ), Cone Flowers, Catmint, Ornamental Strawberry ( low ground cover), repeat-blooming daylilies ( Stellad'Oro) would also work to give you good color throughout the summer.

ASK CAROLYN : READER QUESTION

Linda writes : Bagged top soil and mulch is too expensive for the amount I need to landscape. Where can I buy topsoil and mulch in bulk for my large Chicago- garden area ?

My source is Buy the Yard in Evanston (http://www.buytheyardinc.com )

The garden mix they carry has all the ingredients you need for a good top soil - manure, compost, peat, etc. and you can also buy other products in bulk - manure and leaf compost, mushroom compost, mulch, gravel, pavers, stones and other landscape materials.

If you measure the area and indicate how deep you want the layer of topsoil they will calculate how much you need and deliver it. Be aware however that they do not cart it to your spot but drop it as close to it as possible so you should be prepared to have some helpers on hand .

SPRING DREAMING -SCHEMING

Crabapples are King in Zone 5

A few good days of sunshine and warm weather makes us drop everything and rush outdoors. Chicagoans were walking around in a daze a few days ago when the temperature reached a balmy 70 degrees.

If you haven't made plans for your garden yet, now is the time to do so because the sunny days of May , when the danger of frost is past, will soon be here and planting can begin in earnest. Many experienced gardeners and landscapers plant hardy trees and shrubs as early as April.

If you are starting your garden from scratch, or just want to add to it, give your attention first to a tree , which creates the framework of the garden.

For the small urban garden I would recommend the following ornamentals that are hardy in Zone 5, most prefer sun , but some will do well in partial shade : Amelanchier canadensis, or serviceberry, is a deciduous tree with a rounded form and bears clusters of white flowers in early Spring. It's small edible berries are attractive to birds. Cercis canadensis , or Eastern Redbud, has lavender pink flowers in early Spring , followed by beautiful heart-shaped leaves . 'Forest Pansy', a cultivar with purple bronze leaves, is my favorite. Cornus florida, or the American flowering dogwood is a beautiful tree with horizontal branches and lovely showy white or pink blooms that announce that Spring is here. Cornus Mas, or Japanese Dogwood, has soft yellow fuzzy blooms in Spring and is a nice pyramidal-shaped tree ideal for small spaces. Cornus Kousa , the Asian Dogwood, is very hardy for the Chicago area because it blooms later than the American variety.

A favorite of mine and of course every proper Southern transplant like me has GOT to have one, is the magnolia. Magnolia Lilliflora, 'Little Girl hybrids' are hardy for Zone 5 and only reach 10-15 feet. They have the same red-purple bloom as the bigger Magnolias. I have a 15 year old 'Betty' in my garden, but her sisters, Ricki, Ann, Susan, Jane and Judy are all good performers as well.

Washington, D.C. is known for it's Cherry trees but in the Midwest, Crabapples are King. A few years back the Crabapples were hit hard by fungal disease and growers have been busy developing disease-resistant ones. There's nothing like a Crabapple with its fragrant white or pink blossoms, attractive foilage, colorful fruit or berries, interesting growth habit. There are over 650 cultivars ranging from 6 to 30 '.

For those with partial shade, Japanese maples, which come in an array of colors and forms are ideal ornamental trees for the urban garden.

ASK CAROLYN : READER QUESTION

Spring Planting by Thomas Hart Benson


Amy writes : When is it safe to plant in Chicago ?

Carolyn answers : A few weeks of good weather and people are eager to get out and plant. March was warmer than April has been thus far and I guestimate that Spring is 3 weeks early this year.

So when is the best time to plant in Chicago ? The answer depends on what you are planting. For instance if you are planting trees and shrubs you can do so as soon as the ground permits digging and before they break buds. I know that some horticulture classes will not teach this but I dare say that the trees and shrubs sitting in pots and a 2-4 foot rootball in the nursery would be much happier planted in the ground and more likely to endure a freeze, or drought .

However, I usually err on the side of caution when planting tender perennials and annuals . In Chicago the old rule of thumb is Memorial Day or late May. I've known some gardeners to plant impatients and other frost-tender annuals in April only to have them killed by late frosts.

In Chicago the dates of the last freeze vary from April 25 to May 20 and we can even have severe frosts after that .

SPRING RENEWAL

Every Spring is a renewal of life for me especially now that I'm in my sixth decade . Just as the earth renews itself with beautiful flowers and foilage, I, too, strive for a new beginning.

The Buddhist cycle of life is made up of 12 years, each represented by an animal . I was born in the year of the monkey. When you reach age 60, you are considered to have completed the zodiacal cycle. In Korea it is called hwan-gap and is an especially big celebration with huge banquets and many family and friends bearing gifts .

Hwan-gap is not very popular among my generation because they don't like attention drawn to their age, so the custom is not as popular as it once was. We gave my mother-in-law a huge 60th birthday party that went on for several days. She asked me to sing a Korean song to entertain her friends and she was smiling from ear-to-ear when I added a little dance to it. Next to the Irish, the Koreans love of singing, drinking and dancing is legendary. They've even been called " The Irish of the Orient ! " We Southerners aren't slackers in that category either.

When Korean women reach age 60 they are allowed certain freedoms they didn't have before. I was shocked to see my mother-in-law smoking a cigarette and drinking beer, something frowned on for younger ones. She was also pampered by her sons and liked to wear the new fur coat and diamond ring they gave her when she gathered with her friends.

I used to hate hearing about the "good old days " from my Dad but the older I get, the more I realize what he meant because I too grow nostalgic for that era when we had a kinder and gentler way of life. " What's your hurry, pull up a chair and stay awhile " was a constant refrain from a neighbor with a glass of cool iced tea on a hot day. And we did. Our neighbors were like our family. When one was sick we'd visit and bring them food. When one died we'd be with them for days, cooking meals and attending to their grief.

I am eager to throw off the weary bleak cloak of winter. Hurry Spring !

WELCOME APRIL !

April in the Sweet Home Chicago Garden

I'm always glad to see March leave and April arrive because it means we are getting closer to Summer and Sunny Days. I must say however that this March was one for the record books - the most 60 degree days since I was knee-high to a grasshopper .

April , according to T.S. Eliot, is " the cruel month " and I think perhaps , next to May, more poetry has been written about it.

Here's one of my favorites from the first woman to receive a Pulitzer Prize for Poetry, American Lyricist Edna St. Vincent Millay :

SPRING

To what purpose, April, do you return again ?
Beauty is not enough.
You can no longer quiet me with the redness
Of little leaves opening stickily.
I know what I know.
The sun is hot on my neck as I observe
The spikes of the crocus.
The smell of the earth is good.
It is apparent that there is no death.
But what does that signify?
Not only under ground are the brains of men
Eaten by maggots,
Life in itself
Is nothing.
An empty cup, a flight of uncarpeted stairs.
It is not enough that yearly, down this hill, April
Comes like an idiot, babbling and strewing flowers.