Photo: Robert H. Mohlenbrock — Public domain · source
Survives zone 4 through 8
Harvest calendar
Best planted in early spring after your last frost, or in fall before the ground freezes, depending on your climate.
Amelanchier laevis produces some of the largest and best-tasting fruit in the genus — up to 18mm across, succulent and sweet — and is notable in the botanical literature as one of the species in which apomixis (asexual seed production without fertilization) was specifically documented, a phenomenon central to the genus's famously tangled taxonomy. Seedlings are slow to bear, reaching fruiting age around 12 years from seed.
- Hardiness
- Zone 4–8
- Habit
- Tree
- Edible part
- Fruit
- Ripens
- Summer–autumn
- Mature size
- Small tree 6–9 m, often multi-stemmed, with a light open crown
- Light
- Partial to full sun — best fruit in sun
- Soil pH
- 6.0–7.0 (near-neutral)
- Environment
- Woodland
- Native range
- Eastern North America, from Newfoundland and the Maritimes west through Ontario and northern Wisconsin, south through New England, New York, and Pennsylvania, and along the Appalachian Mountains to northern Georgia and Tennessee — largely an understory species of cool, rich woods.
- Status
- Both wild and cultivated
- Years to fruit
- 2–4 yrs
- Growth speed
- Moderate, about 30-60 cm/year (1-2 ft), reaching full landscape size in roughly 10-20 years.
- Spacing
- 450 cm (177 in) apart — about 20 m² (218 sq ft) per plant
- Leaf shape
- Oval, simple, alternate leaves that emerge with a distinctive reddish-bronze tinge before maturing to dark green; fall color ranges from yellow through orange to red.
- Root system
- Usually multi-trunked with a tendency to form small root-sucker colonies over time, though — along with A. arborea — it has more of a single-trunk tree tendency than the more strongly colonial A. alnifolia or A. canadensis.
- Fruit description
- Among the best fruit in the genus — berries up to 18mm across, succulent and sweet, described by growers as one of the nicest-tasting Amelanchier fruits — eaten fresh, cooked, or dried for storage.
- Propagation
- Seed is best sown fresh, harvested green and sown immediately; stored seed instead needs about 4 weeks of warm stratification followed by a cold winter period and can still take 18 months or more to germinate. Also propagated by spring layering (about 18 months to root), division of 2-year-old root suckers, or hardwood/softwood cuttings; named cultivars are typically grafted.
- Pollination
- One of the specific species in which apomixis — seed set without fertilization — was formally documented in the botanical literature ("Apomixis in Amelanchier laevis, Shadbush", Rosaceae), part of the evidence that most Amelanchier polyploids are apomictic with only a small residual fraction of true sexual reproduction — the fraction that allows occasional hybridization and backcrossing across the genus.
The edible parts listed above are a starting point, not a field guide. Identify a plant with certainty — ideally against a local authority — before eating any part of it, and read the full disclaimer. Spotted something wrong? Report it.
Growing guide
Fertilizing. Tolerates sandy, loamy, and heavy clay soils, including quite acidic ones, and grows well in heavy clay — prefers a rich, moist loam and benefits from organic mulch, but is not a heavy feeder. It is notably tolerant of black walnut (juglone) toxicity, unlike many other trees, though intolerant of salt and drought.
How it spreads. Usually a multi-trunked small tree or tall shrub that forms a small colony over time as root suckers develop, though — along with A. arborea — it is one of only two eastern Amelanchier with a genuine tendency to hold a single-trunk tree form if suckers are removed.
Growing tips. An understory species that does best in partial sun/shade (about 4-6 hours of light) rather than full exposure, and struggles on dry sites. Shares the Rosaceae disease susceptibilities of rust and occasional fire blight; birds consume the fruit avidly, often before it is fully ripe. New leaves emerge with a distinctive reddish tinge before turning green, and fall color ranges from yellow to orange to red.
Companion planting. Rosaceae host for cedar-apple/hawthorn rust (Gymnosporangium spp.), which needs both a Rosaceae host and a Juniperus (juniper/eastern red cedar) host to complete its life cycle. Spores can travel over a mile, so distance alone won't fully prevent it — resistant cultivars are the more reliable control, but avoiding nearby junipers helps.
Grow journal
Sign in to keep a dated log of when you planted, bloomed and harvested this plant.