Amelanchier alnifolia
Western serviceberry
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Hardiness: USDA
Zone
5. Some cultivars are hardy to Zone 3, and a few are actually hardy
to Zone 1!
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Water use: Low.
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Light: Full sun or partial shade.
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Size: 6-20 feet tall, with similar spread.
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Plant habit: Deciduous, flowering and fruiting, upright,
broad shrub.
Plants have multiple stems. Most also form suckers, but there is
variability
in this trait among different cultivars; some produce many suckers and
others produce few.
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Native range: Central and western North America. Found
throughout
Washington state.
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Leaves: Dull green during the growing season and browsed
upon by
deer, elk, and moose. Develops attractive fall color, including red,
orange,
bronze, and yellow.
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Flowers: Blooms in spring for a brief period. White flowers
are
in small clusters. Can be quite showy, especially in ecotypes native in
eastern Washington.
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Fruit: Fruit is bluish-black when ripe in late summer. It is
juicy
and edible. The versatile fruit may be used fresh or dried, cooked or
raw.
It is a common food source among Native Americans, and it is a
component
of mincemeat. It can be used the same ways as blueberries. Popular with
wildlife.
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Bark: Smooth and light gray.
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Culture: Grows well in a wide range of soil types.
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Maintenance: Prune to shape. Larger cultivars may be trained
to
look like small trees.
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Pests/Diseases: May get aphids. Some are susceptible to
powdery
mildew or leaf spot; others are resistant.
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Other: Also known as Saskatoon, Saskatoon berry, or
Juneberry. Cultivars
sold as Amelanchier alnifolia may actually be hybrids between A.
alnifolia and other species of Amelanchier.
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Cultivars: Many cultivars have been developed for fruit
production
and may be available through specialty fruit tree nurseries. For a
description
of the features of different cultivars, see: Saskatoons by
J.G.N.
Davidson and R.G. St. Pierre in HortScience 29(9):959-960
(Sept.
1994).
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'Regent' is a popular cultivar that may be available in local
nurseries.
We have grown this one. It is about 6-8 feet tall, hardy to Zone 3, and
has some resistance to both powdery mildew and leaf spot. It has good
burgundy
and orange fall color and typical blue fruit. It produces a few
suckers,
but it does not sucker profusely.
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'Altaglow' is an older cultivar we have NOT tried, but it sounds
interesting.
It gets 20-25 feet tall and 10 feet wide, producing suckers close to
the
crown. It was selected from the wild in Alberta at 51 degrees North
latitude.
It is hardy to Zone 1. It has good fall color. It produces white fruit!
Return to:
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Page creators:
Virginia I. Lohr
and Caroline H. Pearson-Mims
Dept. of Hort &
LA, Washington St. Univ.
E-mail: pearson@wsu.edu
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& Freedom of Expression Policy
Page updated: April 4, 2008