Amelanchier Laevis, Shadbush/serviceberry Identification Fact Sheet

This is the tree, shrub, and vine identification project fact sheet for Amelanchier laevis, shadbush. This fact sheet may not be copied in part or in whole and submitted as one's own project, but may be cited as a source of facts during one's own research. See tree, shrub, and vine identification project main page for links to other plants, and Native Trees and Shrubs slideshow for pictures.

Plant Botanical Name: Amelanchier laevis

Common Name: Shadbush, Serviceberry, Shadblow, Saskatoon, Allegheny Serviceberry

Family Name: Rosaceae

Plant is Native to What Country: United States and Canada

Plant Height at Maturity: 15-40 feet high and 10-20 feet wide.

Plant Habit and Form: Deciduous trees, usually multi-stemmed, with medium texture and medium growth rate.

Foliage: Simple leaves arranged alternately. Leaves are elliptic or oblong, 1-3 inches long. New growth emerges purple-red, becoming dark green in summer. Fall color is yellow-orange to red, turning colors and falling earlier in autumn.

Bark: Bark gray, smooth, cracking vertically with age, giving a striped appearance.

Flower: White flowers ¾ to 1 inch in size in clusters 2-3 inches large bloom in April before the leaves emerge. One of the first shrubs to flower, the bloom is short lived.

Fruit/Seed: Fruit a pome, 1/3 to 2/3 an inch large, becoming red and usually consumed by wildlife before it ripens fully to a deep purple.

Growing Requirements: Hardy to zone 4, Shadbush prefers partial or full sun. Likes well drained but moist acidic soils.

Problems and Drawbacks: Plants are susceptible to cedar-apple rust. Also affected by aphids, mildews, and scale.

Special Uses: Valued as a native plant. Grown as a specimen or in the landscape. Is valued for its bark and flower. Is also popular for naturalization and is grown to feed wildlife.

ID Tips/Remarks: Long pointed buds

Bibliography: http://www.hort.uconn.edu/plants/a/amelae/amelae1.html, http://www.hcs.ohio-state.edu/hcs/TMI/Plantlist/amelanchier.html