saskatoon berry fruit
© jonpleizier, some rights reserved (CC-BY-NC)
saskatoon berry buds
© Elly Hutchinson, all rights reserved
saskatoon berry flowers
© jim22lawrence, some rights reserved (CC-BY-NC)
saskatoon berry leaves
© Alexey P. Seregin, some rights reserved (CC-BY-NC)

About

Saskatoon Berry is a shrub to small tree native to western and interior North America. Common in forest understory, it occurs from sea level to elevated areas of the rocky mountains. It can form colonies from Suckering in moist fertile soil, but tolerates a variety of conditions including dry and acidic soils.

White flowers appear in spring followed by berry-like edible fruit (pommes) which ripen in the summer. Similar in appearance to blueberries, the fruit is tart in flavor and favorable for pies. When not picked by humans, they're commonly browsed by mammals including cattle, birds, and bears. Leaves oval to round, toothed toward the ends and turning a long lasting orange and red colour in the fall.

Growing From Seed

Growing from seed is one of the most economical and satisfying ways to build a native plant garden. The table shows brief planting instructions, including how long and what kind of stratification this plant needs. For further information on stratification and seed preparation please refer to our article: Preparing To Grow Wild Plant Seeds

Seeds/Packet 20+
Seeds/Gram Coming soon...
Cost/Gram Price coming soon... For bulk orders (min $20)
Dormancy Treatment Cold Moist Stratification
Seeding Instructions Seeds are shipped moist and must not dry out. Scarify seeds with boiling water, then let soak for 24hrs. Following this, cold moist stratify for 3 months.

Growing From Plants

Seedlings are a more economical option than established plants and an easier start than growing from seed. Our plants are shipped in soil blocks or plug trays. Plants do surprizingly well in the mail but need special care upon arrival. Please see Planting Mail Order Seedlings for information on how to plant and care for seedlings.

Shipping

We currently ship seeds to all Canadian provinces and ship plants just within the provinces of British Columbia and Alberta. Seeds ship year-round and usually take a few days (or longer if you are ordering from a distant province). It usually takes 2-5 business days in the mail for plant orders once shipped. Plants are generally available from May to September and can be reserved during off season; Shipping costs are calculated during checkout. Seed orders over $100 ship free! See Shipping for more details.