Serviceberry

What it is

A serviceberry is a pome, the kind of fruit an apple is, in a much smaller package. The fruit measures about 0.6–1.1 cm (¼–½ in) long, with a faint blue-grey waxy bloom and 4–10 seeds in the flesh.

Garden varieties offer different bites. Northline has medium-sized fruit with few seeds; Thiessen produces large, juicy fruit. Less ripe berries taste sharper, while fully ripe ones carry more sugar and bruise more easily.

Where it comes from

Saskatoon serviceberry is native to western and central North America. Its range runs from Alaska down to California and east into the central United States, Ontario and Quebec. Wild plants grow in wooded prairie hollows, along fences and at woodland edges. Selected varieties are also grown as a commercial fruit crop.

How it's eaten where it grows

In Blackfoot tradition, dried saskatoons were crushed and mixed with dried meat and fat to make mookimaani, or pemmican; the berries also went into soup. In the 1800s the Métis were the main suppliers of pemmican to the fur trade, and it was often made with saskatoons or blueberries.

A crêpe recipe from Lorraine’s Saskatoon Berries puts whole berries, banana and cream cheese inside. A sauce of puréed saskatoons and orange juice goes over the top.

How it's grown

The shrub loses its leaves in winter and gives its best fruit in full sun and well-drained loamy soil. Plants usually start bearing at 3–5 years old and reach full production around eight. Birds relish the berries too, so growers use netting to protect the ripening crop.

When and where you'll find it

In Utah, serviceberries usually ripen from late June through July. Fully ripe fruit suits jams and pie fillings, but needs prompt refrigeration; dry berries also freeze for later use. Preserves carry the flavour beyond the fresh season: Bayfield Berry Farm in Ontario pairs saskatoons with pears in jam.