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pale leaf serviceberry, pale serviceberry, Utah service-berry, Utah serviceberry or shadbush

amélanchier de Fernald, Fernald's shadbush

Habit Shrubs, 0.5–5 m. Stems 1–100, often colonial, much branched. Shrubs, 0.5–1 m, rhizomatous.
Stems

1–50, usually forming colonies.

Leaves

mostly or fully unfolded;

petiole (3–)6–13(–22) mm;

blade suborbiculate to oval or obovate, (14–)21–36(–63) × (9–)16–32(–54) mm, base usually rounded to subcordate, sometimes cuneate, each margin with 0–3(–6) teeth on proximal 1/2 and (0–)3–5(–7) teeth in distalmost cm, largest teeth more than 1 mm, apex usually rounded to truncate or emarginate, sometimes acute and mucronate, abaxial surface moderately (sparsely or densely) hairy by flowering, sparsely to moderately hairy later, adaxial glabrous or sparsely (moderately) hairy later.

mostly or fully unfolded;

petiole 1–25 mm;

blade elliptic-oblong to oblong-obovate, 50–80 × 15–45 mm, base rounded to subcordate, each margin with 4–18 teeth on proximal 1/2 and 5–10 teeth in distalmost cm, largest teeth less than 1 mm, apex subacute to rounded or mucronate, abaxial surface glabrous (or sparsely hairy) by flowering, surfaces glabrous later.

Inflorescences

(4–)6–10(–13)-flowered, (8–)16–30(–43) mm.

3–8-flowered, 20–40 mm.

Pedicels

(0 or)1 or 2(or 3) subtended by a leaf, proximalmost (2–)7–16(–25) mm.

usually 1 subtended by a leaf, proximalmost 15–35 mm.

Flowers

sepals usually recurved after flowering, (1.6–)2.6–4.2(–6.5) mm;

petals oblanceolate to oblong, (4.9–)7.2–9.8(–14) × (1.6–)2.6–3.1(–5.3) mm;

stamens (9–)13–19(–20);

styles (2 or)3 or 4, (1.7–)2.3–3(–3.9) mm;

ovary apex moderately to densely hairy (or glabrous).

sepals ascending or spreading after flowering, 3–5 mm;

petals oval to broadly oblanceolate, 8–15 × 3–6 mm;

stamens 20;

styles 5, length unknown;

ovary apex densely hairy.

Pomes

purplish black, 6–10 mm diam. 2n = 4x.

dark purple or almost black, 6–10 mm diam.

Amelanchier utahensis

Amelanchier fernaldii

Phenology Flowering Apr–May; fruiting Jul–Sep. Flowering Jun–Jul; fruiting Jul–Aug.
Habitat Dry rocky slopes, canyons, stream banks, mountainsides, foothills, deserts Ravines, thickets, barrens, rocky banks, shores, sea cliffs, swamps, wet woods, often calcareous
Elevation 900–3500 m (3000–11500 ft) 0–100 m (0–300 ft)
Distribution
from FNA
AZ; CA; CO; ID; MT; NM; NV; OR; TX; UT; WA; WY; Mexico (Baja California)
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
NB; NF; NS; PE; QC
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

The sparsely to moderately hairy mature leaves and twigs, rounded to truncate or emarginate leaf apices, relatively short petals, and reduced numbers of stamens and styles are distinctive characteristics for the wide-ranging and common Amelanchier utahensis. Within 25 years of its publication, about a dozen names were published that G. N. Jones (1946) considered synonyms of A. utahensis. Some recent floras have recognized some of these synonymized taxa, including A. bakeri Greene, A. covillei, A. mormonica C. K. Schneider, A. oreophila A. Nelson, and A. venulosa Greene.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

The rhizomatous habit, leaves that are glabrous upon expanding, and densely hairy ovary apices in Amelanchier fernaldii are a distinctive combination of characteristics. Its relationships to congeners are unclear. Access to flowering material clearly assignable to A. fernaldii has not been available, and the size of floral parts was taken from M. L. Fernald (1950).

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Source FNA vol. 9, p. 650. FNA vol. 9, p. 655.
Parent taxa Rosaceae > subfam. Amygdaloideae > tribe Maleae > Amelanchier Rosaceae > subfam. Amygdaloideae > tribe Maleae > Amelanchier
Sibling taxa
A. alnifolia, A. amabilis, A. arborea, A. bartramiana, A. canadensis, A. cusickii, A. fernaldii, A. gaspensis, A. humilis, A. interior, A. intermedia, A. laevis, A. nantucketensis, A. nitens, A. pallida, A. sanguinea, A. spicata
A. alnifolia, A. amabilis, A. arborea, A. bartramiana, A. canadensis, A. cusickii, A. gaspensis, A. humilis, A. interior, A. intermedia, A. laevis, A. nantucketensis, A. nitens, A. pallida, A. sanguinea, A. spicata, A. utahensis
Synonyms A. covillei, A. glabra, A. gracilis, A. prunifolia, A. utahensis subsp. covillei, A. utahensis var. covillei
Name authority Koehne: Gatt. Pomac., 25, plate 2, fig. 20e. (1890) Wiegand: Rhodora 22: 149. (1920)
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