Saturday, November 3, 2007

The Trees of Our Little Acre - Serviceberry



In 1988, when we had our in-ground pool put in, we also constructed a pool house that doubles as a shed. On the north side of the pool house we planted a serviceberry tree (Amelanchier sp.). It is multi-trunked and has grown to be a lovely, graceful tree that shades an already shady flower bed below it.

There are white blossoms in the spring which give way to luscious fruit that the birds love. Humans can eat them too and they make delicious jelly. Depending on the cultivar, they are hardy to zone 3 or 4. In the fall, the leaves on ours turn a beautiful shade of yellow which contrasts nicely with the smooth and spotted dark bark.

This fall, I was happy to notice a good-sized seedling growing a short distance away and I moved it to the orphan garden for the winter. In the spring, I'll decide where I'm going to plant it permanently. It's really a wonderful tree that I'd put in the same ornamental class as Japanese Maples, because they're so graceful in appearance.

Under its cover is one of Max's favorite places to sleep and stay cool in the summertime.


*Photo of berries from Paghat's Garden.

7 comments:

Priscilla George said...

What a beautiful little tree. It's so very graceful yet slender and not bulky. I love it's subtle changing in color and it's pretty color berries. Cat's pick the best places to nap.

Meems said...

Hello Kylee: Thanks for visiting my blog. I like the berries your tree produces... I really have a thing for all things berry.

The answer to your milkweed question: it is a Scarlet Milkweed Asclepias curassavica.

I am curious- what is a Monarch waystation?

Carol Michel said...

I also have a service berry which I am growing as a small single-trunked tree. I don't know why more people don't plant this tree!

Unknown said...

I don't blame Max--look at that gorgeous tapestry of plants beneath that beautiful tree! He must be a kitty with a discerning eye. :)

Kylee Baumle said...

vanillalotus ~ Yes, the kitties do know all the best places, don't they? :-)

meems ~ Thank you for the asclepias information! A Monarch Waystation is a habitat that attracts Monarch butterflies due to growing specific species of plants for them. You can read more about it here.

Carol ~ I agree! It's not fussy in the least and it's just so darn pretty and graceful!

Kim ~ It does look rather inviting in the picture, doesn't it? And here revamping that bed is on the list for projects next spring! LOL!

Lisa at Greenbow said...

My Serviceberry tree is multi trunked. It is almost like a large shrub. Like you said the birds love it. I like the way it is one of the first to bloom in spring. I can always find spring migrants in it picking bugs from around the blossoms.

Mary said...

Beautiful photos. I see you have Lily of the Valley. I absolutely love that and English violets in the spring. Thanks for sharing. Enjoyed my visit.

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