Put weather challenges behind; It's time to pay attention to soil quality and beds

Gardening in April challenged the best of gardeners; the weatherwas so fickle, it started out warm, then it snowed and finally wesaw the return of spring!

Another sign of spring is the appearance of migrating birds!Encourage them to visit your yard by planting berried bushes likeIroquois Beauty black chokeberry, a new plant introduction from theChicagoland Grows program. Aronia melanocarpa 'Morton' is amultistemmed, deciduous shrub that reaches a height of 3 feet with a5-foot spread.

It has showy white flowers in mid-May followed by clusters ofblack fruit that birds love. The foliage is a glossy green in summerthat turns a brilliant orange to deep red in fall. Iroquois Beautyis an adaptable shrub for wet to dry soils and sun to partial shadewith no serious pest problems.

Sounds too good to be true, but that's the type of plantgardeners are looking for and breeding programs are developing.Iroquois Beauty is a multitasking plant that looks good, blends intoa variety of landscapes and also attracts birds, if you have roomfor only one more plant, make it this one!

Good soil is extremely important for the success of a garden. Ifyou are undertaking any major construction, work with yourcontractor to ensure that your site is restored with adequatetopsoil. Planting beds for trees and shrubs should have 12 to 18inches of topsoil. Remove any small amounts of clay left on top ofthe soil.

Regrade garden beds after construction. It is best to use roughblack topsoil to regrade your planting beds. Pulverized soil may beeasier to work with, but it has had its structure ruined in thepulverizing process. If you have access only to pulverized soil,amend it with compost to begin rebuilding the soil structure.

Before adding compost or tilling garden beds, grade your bedroughly as needed. Hand-spading the bed to loosen the soil makestilling easier and allows you to incorporate compost more deeplyinto the soil. The goal is to uniformly work the compost into thesoil throughout the entire bed.

Problems with crabgrass? If you had problems with crabgrass inyour lawn last year, now is the right time to apply a pre-emergentherbicide to prevent weed seeds from germinating. Before applyingthe herbicide, complete all spring lawn maintenance tasks such asraking and core-aerating. This will help maintain the barrier thatthe chemical herbicide forms against weeds. Since pre-emergentherbicides will also prevent grass seed from germinating, do notapply grass seed at this time. Late August to early September is agood alternative time to install fresh grass seed.

Daffodils are easy to grow and wildlife-resistant! They shouldget plenty of sunlight for six weeks after they bloom so the leavescan make food for next year's flower show. Dividing them is notnecessary normally, but if need be, wait until they finishflowering. Dig under the whole clump with a spading fork, shake offthe loose soil, and carefully separate the roots of the large bulbsfrom each another. Replant at the same depth in a new sunnylocation. Removing spent flowers is good for aesthetic reasons, butmost hybrid daffodils produce few real seeds that would drain energyfrom the next year's bloom.

At the Garden. Plan a visit to the Chicago Botanic Garden'sRegenstein Center to enjoy several free events. The Mid-AmericaOrchid Congress & Society Show is open to the public from 10 a.m. to5 p.m. Saturday, and from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday, in the RegensteinCenter. The Midwest Daffodil Society Show is Saturday from noon to4:30 p.m. and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. in the McGinleyPavilion. All programs are free to the public. For more informationvisit www.chicagobotanic.org.

Tim Johnson is director of horticulture at the Chicago BotanicGarden.