Rosaceae

Saskatoon serviceberry

Amelanchier alnifolia (Nutt.) Nutt. ex M. Roem.

Indigenous Names: Crow (Apsáalooke) documented use, Shared Plains use (multiple tribes documented), wípazutkȟaŋ, Arapaho (documented ethnobotanical use), Blackfeet (documented ethnobotanical use), Heyowuwuno' (Meaning: “Heavy Berries” 125), Heyowuwuno' (Meaning: “Heavy Berries”), To-ump’ Tuwa=pi, To-ump’

Habitat: woodland; riparian; Brushy hillsides, open woods, creek banks, usually in well drained soil. Occasionally found around bogs; Alaska to Colorado

Seasonality: summer; Not given; Ripen in the fall

Status: Native

Traditional Food Use

Lakota

Leaves used to make tea. | Shared Plains: Berries eaten fresh or dried for winter. | Crow: Berries eaten fresh or dried into cakes. | Arapaho: Berries eaten fresh or dried for winter use. | Blackfeet: Berries eaten fresh or dried into cakes.

Arapaho

Ate the berries fresh and dried serviceberries also are added to elk, deer, or bison meat in the manufacture of pemmican. | A tea from the bark of the plant.

Ute

Berries are harvested seasonally for immediate consumption and surplus is dried for five days and stored in sacks for winter use | Ute: Berries are used in season. Eaten raw, cooked and dried into cakes for later consumption

Medicinal Documentation

Lakota

This infusion is excellent as a simple beverage, ziŋtká wóte, but it is also effective in treating lung congestion caused by the flu. An infusion of the leaves is tȟatȟáŋka hotȟúŋ, used as a bath to treat eczema. Stems are boiled and used to treat neuralgia and | Shared Plains: Digestive and mild cold support. | Crow: Used for digestive support.

Ceremonial & Cultural Notes

Ute

According to Smith’s consultants, serviceberries were a favorite berry.11

Botanical Reference

Parts Documented: leaf, stem, fruit_or_berry, Bark, Berries, Fruit

Distribution: Widespread native Plains species; multi-tribal use documented; Native Plains species; documented Crow use

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