Amelasorbus jackii

Rehder

Rosaceae Edible: Fruit

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Summary

Source: Wikipedia

A deciduous shrub growing to 2m tall. Hardy to UK zone 3 and USDA zones 3-9. Flowers from April to May with hermaphrodite blooms pollinated by insects. Grows in light sandy, medium loamy, and heavy clay soils with mildly acid to basic pH, preferring well-drained conditions. Tolerates semi-shade or full sun and prefers moist soil.

Description

Edible Uses

The fruit can be eaten raw or cooked, though it is not particularly palatable.

Traditional Uses

The fruit are eaten raw or cooked.

This uses section is brief — help expand it

Medicinal Uses

None known.

Distribution

It is a temperate plant. It grows naturally in Western North America in Idaho and Oregon. It does best in a well drained moist soil in a sunny position. It can tolerate cold to -20°C.

Where It Grows

North America, USA,

Cultivation

Prefers a sunny position in a well-drained moisture-retentive humus-rich lime-free soil. This species probably tolerates some lime in the soil.Succeeds in semi-shade though it fruits less well in such a position. Hardy to about -20°c. Plants are surprisingly vigorous in British gardens. A naturally occurring bi-generic hybrid, Amelanchier alnifolia semiintegrifolia x Sorbus scopulina, it is very variable in the wild.

Propagation

Seed is best harvested green — when fully formed but before the seed coat has hardened — and sown immediately in pots outdoors or in a cold frame. Stored seed obtained early in autumn can be given 4 weeks of warm stratification before being left out over winter, then should germinate in spring. Otherwise germination can be very slow, potentially taking 18 months or more. Prick seedlings out into individual pots once large enough to handle, grow on in a sheltered outdoor position, and plant out once they reach 20cm or more. This is a bigeneric hybrid and, if seed is produced, it is unlikely to breed true. Where seed is plentiful, sow thinly in an outdoor seedbed and grow on for two years before planting into permanent positions during winter. Layering in spring takes around 18 months. Suckers can be divided in late winter, but they need at least two years of growth before being dug up to ensure they have formed roots; these can be planted straight into permanent positions if needed.