The Georgia Native Plant Society today announced that the membership has voted for downy serviceberry, a small showy spring-flowering tree, as their 2005 native plant of the year. Also known as the service tree (or “sarvis” tree in the Appalachian Mountains), the name refers to the tradition of holding spring burial services for people who died during the winter when the ground was frozen. Those who had to travel from remote hollows knew it was time for services when these early spring bloomers began to flower. Additional names include the shadbush and shadblow, which alludes to the fact that these trees bloom when the shad travel up the rivers to spawn.
With many cultivars available, the downy serviceberry is a good choice to replace disease-prone dogwood and weak Bradford pear as the tree of choice for dramatic spring flowers in the home landscape. Elegant white flower clusters are followed by a profusion of edible fruit, which gradually ripens from pale green to a deep reddish-purple. This early fruit, ripening in June, is favored by songbirds and other animals, was used both fresh and dried, by Native Americans, and has been used for homemade wine, pies, and jams.
The downy serviceberry will reach maturity in twenty years and can live up to fifty years. It will grow twenty to thirty feet in height, and can be expected to provide interest throughout the year. With soft “downy” hairs on the underside of young leaves, the foliage presents a silvery appearance, maturing to a bright green in summer and yellow to red in autumn.
Each year the Society selects one plant native to the state of Georgia to be honored as plant of the year. Past winners include oakleaf hydrangea, Hydrangea quercifolia, Piedmont Azalea, Rhodedendron canesens, Wax Myrtle, Morella cerifera, Foamflower, Tiarella cordifolia, and Sourwood, Oxydendrum arboreum.
Images of all winners are available along with detail photographs of this year’s winner. An article about the Serviceberry written by Mary Pyne Tucker is also attached. Authorization to reprint this article will be granted upon request.
The Georgia Native Plant Society was founded in 1994 as a nonprofit, charitable, and educational organization. Our goal is to know native plants and to make them known to others. GNPS activities are designed to promote the conservation of Georgia's native plants and habitats through education, research and the relocation of plants threatened with destruction. To grow a plant is to know it; therefore, we encourage the appropriate use of native plants in gardens and in landscapes. Additional information may be found at www.gnps.org.
