Herb: Pale Serviceberry


Latin name: Amelanchier pallida


Synonyms: Amelanchier gracilis


Family: Rosaceae (Rose Family)



Medicinal use of Pale Serviceberry:

An infusion of the inner bark is used to treat snow-blindness. A decoction of the boiled roots has been used to check too frequent menstruation.

Description of the plant:



Plant:
Deciduous
Shrub

Height:
4 m
(13 feet)

Habitat of the herb:

Dry gravelly and rocky slopes and flats below 3300 metres especially in moist coniferous forests in California.

Edible parts of Pale Serviceberry:

Fruit - raw or cooked. The fruit is rich in iron and copper.

Propagation of the herb:

Seed - it is best harvested "green", when the seed is fully formed but before the seed coat has hardened, and then sown immediately in pots outdoors or in a cold frame. If stored seed is obtained early enough in the autumn, it can be given 4 weeks warm stratification before being left out in the winter and it should then germinate in the spring. Otherwise seed can be very slow to germinate, perhaps taking 18 months or more. When large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and grow them on in a sheltered outdoor position, planting them out once they are 20cm or more tall. If there is sufficient seed it is best to sow it thinly in an outdoor seedbed. Grow the seedlings on for two years in the seedbed before planting them out into their permanent positions during the winter. Layering in spring - takes 18 months. Division of suckers in late winter. The suckers need to have been growing for 2 years before you dig them up, otherwise they will not have formed roots. They can be planted out straight into their permanent positions if required.

Cultivation of Pale Serviceberry:

Dry gravelly and rocky slopes and flats below 3300 metres especially in moist coniferous forests in California.

Known hazards of Amelanchier pallida:

None known

Plant information taken from the Plants For A Future.