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{{SPlantbox
|common_name=Serviceberry
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Amelanchier (said to be a Savoy name). Rosàceae. Shad-bush. Juneberry. Ornamental woody subjects chiefly cultivated for their profuse white flowers appearing in early spring; some species also grown for their fruits.
Deciduous shrubs or small trees: winter-buds conspicuous, pointed, with several imbricate scales: Lvs. alternate, petioled, serrate: fls. in racemes terminal on short branchlets, rarely solitary; calyx-tube campanulate, adnate to the ovary, with 5 persistent lobes; petals 5; stamens 10-20; styles 2-5; ovary inferior, 2-5-celled, each cell with 2 ovules and subdivided : fr. a berry-like pome, juicy, with a cavity at the top.—About 20 or 25 species, most of them in N. Amer., 2 in Mex., 4 in Eu., and W. Asia, and 1 in E. Asia. The species are closely related and often difficult to distinguish, especially as numerous spontaneous hybrids apparently occur. For a detailed treatment of the species of E. N. Amer., see Wiegand in Rhodora 14, p. 117 (1912). In trade catalogues, they are sometimes confused with Aronia, which is easily distinguished by its compound corymbose infl., 5-celled mealy fr. and by the midrib of the Lvs. being glandular above.
The amelanchiers are deciduous shrubs or trees with simple, suborbicular to oblong serrate leaves, rather email white flowers in racemes followed by purplish or bluish black berry-like fruits. They are very desirable for ornament, producing a profusion of white flowers in early spring, and range from shrubs only a few feet high, as A. humilis and A. stolonifera, to trees attaining 40 feet in height, as A. canadensis and A. laevis. The latter species is perhaps the most beautiful, the white color of the pendulous loose racemes being enhanced by the red bracts and the bronzy red color of the unfolding leaves; the other species are pure white when blooming, the young leaves being covered by a whitish tomentum.
A. humilis and A. stolonifera and also A. sanguínea seem to be the best for fruit, which ripens later than the others; there is also a large-fruited form of A. laevis. See Juneberry.
All the species mentioned below are hardy North and thrive upon a variety of soils and succeed well in dry climates; some, as A. sanguínea, A. humilis and A. rotundifolia show a preference for calcareous soil and grow well in dry situations, while others, as A. oblongifolia and A. Bartramiana prefer moist and swampy soil.
Propagation is by seeds sown soon after ripening or stratified and sown in spring and the stoloniferous species also by suckers; rare kinds are sometimes budded in summer on a common species or on Crataegus.
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The name serviceberry comes from the similarity of the [[fruit]] to the related European [[Service Tree]], ''Sorbus domestica'', a name that in turn is derived via the [[French language|French]] ''sorbier'' from the [[Latin]] name for the tree ''sorbus'', recorded by [[Pliny the Elder]]. A widespread [[folk etymology]] states that plant's flowering time signaled to early American [[settler|pioneer]]s that the ground had thawed enough in spring for the burial of the winter's dead. The name ''Amelanchier'' is derived from the French name ''amelanche'' of the European serviceberry. The city name of [[Saskatoon]] in [[Saskatchewan]] comes from a [[Cree]] Indian name ''misaaskwatoomin'' for the [[juneberry]].
The name serviceberry comes from the similarity of the [[fruit]] to the related European [[Service Tree]], ''Sorbus domestica'', a name that in turn is derived via the [[French language|French]] ''sorbier'' from the [[Latin]] name for the tree ''sorbus'', recorded by [[Pliny the Elder]]. A widespread [[folk etymology]] states that plant's flowering time signaled to early American [[settler|pioneer]]s that the ground had thawed enough in spring for the burial of the winter's dead. The name ''Amelanchier'' is derived from the French name ''amelanche'' of the European serviceberry. The city name of [[Saskatoon]] in [[Saskatchewan]] comes from a [[Cree]] Indian name ''misaaskwatoomin'' for the [[juneberry]].
The [[leaf|leaves]] are alternate, entire or finely serrate, oval, 2-10 cm long and 1-4 cm broad, green, often turning brilliant orange or red in the fall. The [[flower]]s are white, 2-4 cm diameter, with five petals, and borne in terminal racemes of 5-25. The flowers appear in early spring, "when the [[shad]] run" according to tradition (leading to names such as "shadbush"). The fruit is a small [[pome]], 1-2 cm diameter, blue-black, edible and often sweet, maturing in summer (whence the name 'juneberry').
The [[leaf|leaves]] are alternate, entire or finely serrate, oval, 2-10 cm long and 1-4 cm broad, green, often turning brilliant orange or red in the fall. The [[flower]]s are white, 2-4 cm diameter, with five petals, and borne in terminal racemes of 5-25. The flowers appear in early spring, "when the [[shad]] run" according to tradition (leading to names such as "shadbush"). The fruit is a small [[pome]], 1-2 cm diameter, blue-black, edible and often sweet, maturing in summer (whence the name 'juneberry').
Serviceberries are preferred browse for deer and rabbits, and heavy browsing pressure can suppress natural regeneration. [[Brimstone Moth]], [[Brown-tail]], ''[[Bucculatricidae|Bucculatrix pomifoliella]]'', [[Grey Dagger]], [[Gypsy moth]], [[Mottled Umber]], [[Satellite (moth)|The Satellite]], [[Winter Moth]] and other defoliating insects also have a taste for serviceberry. The same insects and diseases that attack orchard trees also affect this genus, in particular trunk borers and ''[[Gymnosporangium]]'' rust. In years when late flowers overlap those of wild roses and brambles, bees may spread bacterial [[fireblight]].
Serviceberries are preferred browse for deer and rabbits, and heavy browsing pressure can suppress natural regeneration. [[Brimstone Moth]], [[Brown-tail]], ''[[Bucculatricidae|Bucculatrix pomifoliella]]'', [[Grey Dagger]], [[Gypsy moth]], [[Mottled Umber]], [[Satellite (moth)|The Satellite]], [[Winter Moth]] and other defoliating insects also have a taste for serviceberry. The same insects and diseases that attack orchard trees also affect this genus, in particular trunk borers and ''[[Gymnosporangium]]'' rust. In years when late flowers overlap those of wild roses and brambles, bees may spread bacterial [[fireblight]].
