Saskatoons

Also called Juneberry, Parsonberry, Serviceberry, Shadblow, Shadbush and Shad. Purplish-black sweet berries great for pies, cobblers, jellies, jams, smoothies and cakes. Fruits are about the size of a lowbush blueberry, or a bit larger. Botanically speaking, the “berries” are actually tiny pomes, more closely related to apples and pears than blueberries. The seeds are also larger and more noticeable than those of other berries and add a satisfying nutty crunch. Saskatoons are highly nutritious and were traditionally prized by Indigenous North American peoples for their medicinal properties and as a key ingredient in pemmican. Fruit ripens in mid-July in central Maine.

We’ve always admired our native Amelanchiers in the wilds of Maine where they grow along stream edges and rocky slopes. Beautiful fragrant 5-petaled white flowers are early harbingers of spring. Nice red-orange fall foliage. Recently we’re learning more about saskatoons farmed commercially for fruit in Canada, much like how we grow highbush blueberries. In Canada there are saskatoon festivals, and even a baseball team called the Saskatoon Berries!

Growing Saskatoons

• Soil: Moist well-drained soil; will tolerate clay.
• Sun: Full.
• Pollination: Self-fruitful, but plant more than one variety for better yields.
• Spacing: 5' apart.