Amelanchier canadensis

The Shadblow Serviceberry is a large shrub in the Rose family native to moist woods in the Eastern seabord of the U.S. and up into Canada. In NC it is found in counties of the lower Piedmont and Coastal plain. Serviceberry is beloved by native plant lovers for its many fine features: in spring it is covered with delicate, white, fragrant flowers which appear in racemes at the ends of branches before the leaves; in summer it produces beautiful, edible red berries which eventually mature to blue/black; in the fall it finishes the season with a very impressive golden/orange foliar display. In addition to providing nectar for the earliest pollinators of the season, Serviceberry’s fruit support many birds, including goldfinches, chickadees, cardinals and robins. Serviceberry is versatile, thriving in many soil and water conditions. It is a bit slow to flower, but it is well worth the wait.