Amelanchier alnifolia ‘Smoky’

Amelanchier alnifolia is best-known as the Saskatoon berry but is also called the western or alder leaved serviceberry. It is a super hardy medium sized to large deciduous shrub that produces lovely white flowers in spring followed by tasty blue to purple-black fruit in summer that can be used in jams, jellies, pies, and herbal teas. The fruit has a similar nutrient profile to blueberries and was an important food for First Nations peoples who added the berries to dried meat to make pemmican. It is also an important larval host to the caterpillars of various swallowtail butterfly species. The fruit is eaten by birds, squirrels, and other wildlife. ‘Smoky’ is high-yielding in the mid season with small, sweet fruit with a strong almond flavour. Plants sucker freely.