Honeywood Saskatoon (Serviceberry) vs Mountain Huckleberry - TreeTime.ca

Honeywood Saskatoon (Serviceberry) vs Mountain Huckleberry

Amelanchier alnifolia Honeywood

Vaccinium membranaceum

NOT AVAILABLE THIS SEASON - MIGHT RETURN

NOT AVAILABLE THIS SEASON - MIGHT RETURN

Honeywood Saskatoon (Serviceberry)
Mountain Huckleberry

Honeywood Saskatoon, also known as Serviceberries, is excellent at producing an abundance of blue-coloured berries in mid-summer and has dark green foliage that turns yellow in the fall. It is quite large making it a perfect shrub in your backyard garden. Often grown for its edible qualities, the Honeywood Saskatoon is quite ornamental with stunning white blooms in the spring.

Mountain Huckleberry is a small shrub known for its tart to sweet berries. The berries range from purple-black to red-black, and can be eaten fresh or used in jams and syrups. It is a plant native to Alberta and the berries are frequently enjoyed by both people and wildlife.

In traditional Indigenous fire management practices, berry patches were burned after harvest. This would reduce the invasion of other plants allowing the Mountain Huckleberry to thrive. Its foliage has low flammability and can survive low severity fires, and even if destroyed they regrow from the roots.

Note: Mountain Huckleberry requires specific soil conditions. They need moist, well-drained, acidic soil with a pH around 5.5.

Honeywood Saskatoon (Serviceberry) Quick Facts

Mountain Huckleberry Quick Facts

Zone: 2a
Zone: 5a
Height: 5 m (15 ft)
Height: 0.6 m (2.0 ft)
Spread: 3 m (10 ft)
Spread: 0.6 m (2.0 ft)
Light: partial shade, full sun
Light: full sun
Moisture: normal
Moisture: any
Growth rate: fast
Growth rate: medium
Life span: medium
Life span: short
Suckering: low
Suckering: high
Maintenance: medium


Berries: produces large edible berries
Berries: dark purple
Flavor: sweet, acidic
Harvest: mid to late summer
Hybrid: no
Hybrid: no
Catkins: no
Catkins: no


Native to: AB, BC, SK, MB, ON, YT, NT
Native to: AB, BC, ON, YT, NT
Other Names: honeywood juneberry, honeywood service berry
Other Names: big huckleberry, black huckleberry, tall bilberry, thinleaf huckleberry