Amelanchier utahensis

Utah service-berry, Utah Service-Berry

Amelanchier utahensis (Utah service-berry), native California shrub / tree

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Family: Rosaceae · Type: Shrub / Tree · Native

Amelanchier utahensis (Utah service-berry) is a native California shrub / tree in the Rosaceae family, recognized by Co-occurs with A. alnifolia var. semiintegrifolia; distinguished by smaller stature, flowers, and fewer styles.

Utah service-berry is a California native shrub found in northwestern California, the Cascade Range, Sierra Nevada, central western California, southwestern California, Modoc Plateau, eastern Sierra Nevada, and desert mountains in open, rocky slopes, canyons, creek banks, deserts, and conifer forests at elevations of 200 to 3,400 meters. Flowering from April to June, this plant produces white flowers in clusters with 3 to 6 blooms, each petal 6 to 11 millimeters long. Growing 0.5 to 5 meters tall with twigs that range from completely smooth to generally white-hairy, it forms a multi-stemmed shrub with variable texture. Its leaves are broadly shaped, 13 to 45 millimeters long and 10 to 45 millimeters wide, generally serrated above the middle, with hairy undersides that become more finely hairy as the plant matures. The fruit is a rounded berry 6 to 10 millimeters in diameter, developing after the flower clusters fade.

Identification and appearance

Key characters: Co-occurs with A. alnifolia var. semiintegrifolia; distinguished by smaller stature, flowers, and fewer styles

Habitat and range

Habitat: Open, rocky slopes, canyons, banks of creeks, deserts, conifer forest

Elevation: 200-3400 m

California counties: Mendocino, San Bernardino, Kern, Los Angeles, Mono, San Diego, Fresno, Inyo, Plumas, Monterey, Riverside, Tulare, San Luis Obispo, Napa, Santa Clara, Humboldt, Santa Barbara, Madera, Siskiyou, Sierra, Placer, Lassen, Alpine, Sonoma, El Dorado, Modoc, Nevada, San Mateo, San Francisco, Shasta, Tehama, Glenn, Trinity, Tuolumne, Mariposa, Ventura, Amador, Contra Costa, San Benito, Santa Cruz, Alameda, Butte, Del Norte, Lake, Marin, Colusa, Calaveras, Yuba

Outside California: to Oregon, Montana, Texas, Baja California

Bloom period

Amelanchier utahensis blooms Apr-Jun.

How to tell it apart

vs Prunus: Prunus has smooth or single-pitted fruits; Amelanchier has berries with papery segments like tiny apples.; vs Symphoricarpos: Symphoricarpos has opposite leaves and white berries; Amelanchier has alternate leaves and blue-black berries.; vs Frangula: Frangula has smooth leaf edges; Amelanchier has finely toothed leaf margins in the upper half.; vs Cercocarpus: Cercocarpus has dry fruits with feathery tails; Amelanchier has juicy blue-black berries.; vs Ceanothus: Ceanothus has dry capsule fruits; Amelanchier has fleshy blue-black berries.

Frequently asked questions

Is Amelanchier utahensis native to California?

Yes. Amelanchier utahensis is native to California (recorded as native).

When does Amelanchier utahensis bloom?

Amelanchier utahensis blooms Apr-Jun.

Where in California does Amelanchier utahensis grow?

Amelanchier utahensis occurs in Mendocino, San Bernardino, Kern, Los Angeles, Mono, San Diego, Fresno, Inyo and other counties, at elevations of 200-3400 m.

What plant family does Amelanchier utahensis belong to?

Amelanchier utahensis is in the Rosaceae family, genus Amelanchier.

What habitat does Amelanchier utahensis grow in?

Amelanchier utahensis grows in Open, rocky slopes, canyons, banks of creeks, deserts, conifer forest.

Related species

Other California species in the same genus, family, or bioregion.

All Amelanchier species · All Rosaceae

Sources: Jepson eFlora · Index of California Plant Names · CalPhotos

Last updated 2026-10-07

Data from The California Species Project — 14,000+ California species with verified data from CNPS, CDFW, USFWS, Cal-IPC, and more.