1. * Western Serviceberry – Amelanchier alnifolia
(am-el-AN-keer all-nih-FOE-lee-uh)
Family: Rosaceae (Rose Family)
Native to: Western North America from CA to AK. Locally in western San Gabriels; usually on slopes
near streams or dry creeks, or in open woodlands in full sun to part shade.
woody shrub
mature height: 6-12+ ft.
mature width: 6-10 ft.
Upright, woody shrub to small tree. Leaves simple, oval, dull green and winter-deciduous. In colder
climates, leaves become yellow/orange in fall. Bark smooth, gray or reddish.
Plants can form
multiple trunks from suckering roots. Moderate to slow growth; long-lived (50+ years).
Growth characteristics:
Blooms in spring (Apr-Jun). Flowers are pure white, fragrant, in compact clusters.
Plants are very showy in bloom – and bloom may last up to a month. Small, sweet, dark-blue
berries ripen in early summer. Fruits are good fresh, dried, in baking or for preserves and sauces –
even for wine or teas. Use berries as one would blueberries. You’ll have to fight the birds for them!
Blooms/fruits:
Uses in the garden: Nice all-purpose shrub for shrub borders, hillsides & slopes, as a tall hedge or
screen.
Excellent addition to an edibles garden. Can be trained to a single-trunk ‘tree’ or even
espaliered along a wall.
Sensible substitute for: Non-native large shrubs.
Excellent bird habitat: thrushes, towhees, bluebirds, waxwings, orioles, tanagers,
grosbeaks, goldfinches, juncos eat the fruit. Foliage eaten by swallowtail and other butterfly larvae.
Attracts:
Requirements:
Element
Sun
Soil
Water
Fertilizer
Other
Requirement
Full sun to part-shade (even fairly shady).
Any well-drained soil – quite tolerant; likes lower pH (5.0-7.0 optimal)
Moist to dry soils – Zones 2 to 2-3 best.
Mulch well with an organic mulch
Pruning as needed. Can be pruned to shape – even severely – but retain last year’s
growth for good fruit production.
Fire Blight and fungal diseases possible with regular irrigation.
Management:
Propagation: from seed: cold-moist treatment; plant in spring
by cuttings: yes
Plant/seed sources (see list for source numbers): 1, 6, 8, 10, 13
4/1/09
* Native to CA but not to Western L.A. Co.
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