WHY ARE DOLLY PARTON'S FEET SO SMALL ?

Viburnum is a shrub with multi-season Interest
Berries Appear After Flowers

" I have this really deep shade, I mean no sun whatsover. Total darkness. What can I grow there ? " is a frequent question I get. I try hard to avoid rolling my eyes and I gather up my best Southern charm and pose a question back ( have you ever noticed, like Johnny Carson used to say that a Southerner always answers a question with a question , ie., " Does a chicken have wings? " ) : Do you know why Dolly Parton has such small feet ? " I ask. A look of surprise and astonishment. " Because nothing grows in the shade. "

That's a bit simplistic I know, but defining shade is more of an art than a science. There's light shade, part shade, deep shade and dappled shade. Confused yet ? Let's clear it up. A lightly shaded area is without sun for two to four hours a day . Dappled shade has shadows across it all day but add up to only two to four sunless hours. Partly shaded areas get around 4 to 5 hours of shade and full shade lasts all day.

I've seen many shady gardens with the usual yews, azaleas and boxwood and while these are great as framework, it would be better to mix in shrubs that give longer seasonal interest. As mentioned in previous posts, I am a big fan of our native shrubs Viburnums. For a comprehensive selection of " VIBURNUMS FOR THE HOME LANDSCAPE " go to The Morton Arbetorum's website at Http:www.mortonarb.org.

Viburnum Carlesii, or Koreanspice

The incredible fragrance of Spring blooming Koreanspice , combined with its tolerance of adverse conditions such as clay soil, semi-shade, alkalinity and drought, low maintenance, gray-green foilage, attractive red fruit in late Summer , and compact size make it a superb choice for the garden .

CAREFREE RHODODENDRONS FOR ZONE 5

Rhododendron 'Olga Mezitt' has been a staple in my Spring garden for two decades.

I love Rhododendrons and Azaleas and include them in many gardens that I design and install. Frequently a client will tell me that they've given up on trying to grow them. That's when I introduce Mr. and Mrs. Rhododendron : PJM ( Mr. ) and Olga Mezitt ( Mrs. ) two outstanding winter hardy varieties for Zone 4 and 5 . PJM is the namesake of its developer Peter J. Mezitt and Olga is named for his wife. I wish I had a husband that would immortilize me like that. I'm proud to say that I discovered Olga way before it became popular. It was an " end of the sea-
son " sale at Gethsemane Garden Center and I adopted the not so good lookin' Olga for $15 bucks. She didn't look like much for the first two years but " baby, look at me now ! " I had neighbors calling me and asking what that large pink shrub was in my garden. They couldn't believe it was a Rhododendron.

The PJM has been around for quite a while - it's the intense lavender Rhodo you see in late April in Chicagoland. You will notice from the photo above that Olga's color is a soft pink , rare in early blooming Rhododendrons. These two Rhododendrons are very popular with garden and landscape designers because they know not only are they gorgeous in full bloom, evergreen year-round, but are proven performers.

In addition to Olga and PJM's beautiful blooms, it's foilage turns a wonderful purple bronze in the Fall. My Olga is planted next to a path and when I brush by her the intense herbal scent of her leaves fill the air.

When planting Rhodos and Azaleas the most important thing you can do is to properly prepare the soil, which must be able to drain well. These are acid-lovers so be generous in adding compost, manure, peatmoss or Black Forest soil conditioner. Don't think you can just plop it in the ground and then give it a dose of Miracid.

If properly planted in fertile soil, Rhodos and Azaleas require little attention, including fertilization. In twenty years I have never once fertilized Olga because I planted it with the utmost consideration of her needs. This is the most important thing you can do for your Rhodo or Azalea : supply it with the acidity it loves and that means incorporating a lot of organic matter - compost, manure, Black Forest soil conditioner or peat moss at the time of planting. Don't think you can just plop it in the ground and then feed it with Miracid ( a Miraclegro product ) because it won't work. Make sure the soil is well drained because Rhodos don't like wet feet. Olga likes a little light pruning ( immediately after it blooms ) for the first 4 or 5 years.

If you feel you must fertilize, make sure you don't do it after late June or tender new growth could be winter damaged. If you see mineral deficiencies ( yellowing of the leaves ) then apply an organic fertilizer made for acid-loving plants around the base in late Fall or early Spring.

I'm hoping to see more of Mr. and Mrs. Rhododendron in Chicago gardens.

NOTHING SAYS SPRING LIKE FORSYTHIA

For the most part pest and disease free, tolerant of city pollution and not fussy about soil as long as it it well drained, this harbinger of Spring will even tolerate light shade. These hardy shrubs have been known to bloom for 50 years or more, even when neglected.

'Northern Sun ' and 'Meadowlark ' are two especially hardy cultivars for cold climates. The ideal time for planting Forsythias is Spring and they will be appearing at a garden center near you very soon.

Planting Forsythias in Spring will give them an entire season to put down roots and develop new buds for the next season. For a spectacular sight, plant them over fences and walls and let their branches spill over.

Forsythias are available in different sizes ( there's even a low growing groundcover size ) and colors that vary from lightest to deepest yellow and pink, yes, I mean pink.

This low maintenance, spectacular specimen has something for every garden, large or small and nothing announces Spring with such intensity.

A RECORD SMASHING DAY IN CHICAGO

Sunday was a record smashing 79 degrees and we all went nuts ! It's hard to believe its still March . Just yesterday I was shivering in 40 degrees. Everyone, I mean EVERYONE was outside today and very early I must say. Soaking up the Vitamin D and just acting as if they were in a haze. Just to feel the warm sun on your face and back was heaven. To see the emergence of tiny green things, yellow and purple crocus, tulips and daffodils . Buds are starting to pop on the forsythia, magnolia and crabapple.

I walked up and down my street talking to neighbors who were out doing their Spring cleanup of uncovering bulbs and flowers and at the same time, enjoying the sunshine. Sunshine sure puts everyone in a good mood.

What's blooming now ? Not too much, but depending on how much sunshine you have - snowdrops and crocus is all I saw, and some Siberian squill. If we have a few more days of this we will see a lot more plants emerge and bloom.

We all realize that this day and everyday like it is a gift and that right up until the end of May we could be hit with freezing weather.

The weather forecast shows the warm temperatures will continue until Saturday and Sunday, the days when I am scheduled to work outside. Murphy's law rules.

Ask Carolyn : Reader Question

From Bill : I love Ajuga, the purple-leaf, supposedly perennial groundcover and planted a lot of it last year. This year, it doesn't appear to be returning. What's going on ?

Dear Bill : Ajuga is a "tender " perennial in our area. I love it too, and it was happily growing in my garden for six years when one especially cold winter did it in. We had a very harsh winter this year and the freeze/thaw cycle makes it difficult for shallow- rooted groundcover to survive.

I'm afraid that I'm an optimist . I usually replace it if it doesn't come back because the deep purple-blue flowers are attractive and the purple-green foilage is effective for a long time.

This year, however, I'm going to be a little wiser and look for Ajuga that is hardy to Zone 4. Two varieties - 'Catlin's Giant ' ( twice the size and impact ) and ' Purple Torch ' are two that I will be buying.