Downy Serviceberry
Amelanchier arborea
White flowers on bare early spring branches, then purple-red June fruit the birds take eagerly. A tough small tree for lean, dry sites.
Typically 1 quart–3 gal · $17–$85 · final price at pickup
- Thu, Aug 138 AM – 4 PM
- Fri, Aug 148 AM – 4 PM
- Sat, Aug 158 AM – 2 PM
The most adaptable serviceberry, thriving in dry rocky sites where other flowering trees fail.
Downy serviceberry is the most widely distributed serviceberry species in eastern North America, and for good reason. It grows on rocky ridges, forest edges, and stream banks from Maine to Florida, tolerating lean soils and dry conditions that would stress other flowering trees. The white flowers in March and April are stunning against bare branches, and the fuzzy new leaves that emerge at the same time give this species its 'downy' name. Fruit ripens to dark purple-red in June, slightly drier and less sweet than Allegheny serviceberry but still eagerly taken by birds. It typically grows as a large shrub or small multi-stem tree, making it easier to fit into residential landscapes where a fifty-foot canopy tree would be too much. Fall color ranges from yellow-orange to deep red depending on siting.
A nursery-grown plant, ready for the ground.
Healthy, container-grown downy serviceberry propagated on-site at Hill House from regional genetics. Includes a one-page care card. We make every effort to supply plants as listed; occasionally we substitute a similar species of equal value.
Plant downy serviceberry instead of Bradford pear (Pyrus calleryana). Same job in the garden, without the spread.
- Sun
- Full sun
- Water
- Average
- Mature size
- 15–30 ft · 12–22 ft wide
- Bloom time
- Early spring
- Bloom color
- White
- USDA zones
- 4–9
- Family
- Rosaceae
- Native range
- Eastern North America from Maine to Florida, west to Minnesota and Kansas
Care notes for downy serviceberry.
Among the most adaptable serviceberries. Tolerates dry, rocky, or infertile soils once established. Full sun brings the best flowering and fall color; part shade is fine. Water during the first growing season. Essentially no maintenance once established. this is a tough, reliable tree that earns its keep without help.
Pairs well with these.
Same light, same soil, same wildlife. Janet's picks to plant alongside downy serviceberry.
Or skip the guesswork.
Curated packages bundle complementary species for an instant habitat. One reservation, one pickup day, a printed layout map.
Short on Space Package
For gardeners who have an abundance of passion but are short on space, this package features tidy, upright, clump-forming natives that behave and function well in small spaces.
Shade Bed Package
Ferns, sedges, and woodland natives that thrive under existing trees.
Birder’s Paradise Package
For the avid bird watchers and budding ornithologists in our community, the Birder’s Paradise Package consists of species that Hill House Nursery staff and longtime native plant advocates such as Doug Tallamy consider ‘premier bird garden plants’.