Apple Serviceberry arrived in European gardens before botanists could settle its parentage, a naturally occurring hybrid that seeds reliably true and has earned its place with a certain quiet confidence. Named for the 18th-century French naturalist Jean-Baptiste Lamarck, Amelanchier x lamarckii can grow to 25 feet as a multi-stemmed tree or tall shrub, its blue-green foliage emerging bronze in spring just as the pink-flushed white blossoms open. The combination is striking: pale flowers against young leaves that are just catching colour.

The fruit that follows in June gives this plant its other common name, Juneberry — small, blueberry-sized, and genuinely worth eating, whether fresh or cooked into jams and pies. Birds arrive before you do, so a little netting goes a long way if the harvest matters. Grow it in moist, well-drained, slightly acidic soil in full sun for the best berry production, and remove root suckers if a tree form is preferred. It received the Royal Horticultural Society Award of Garden Merit and has earned it. Hardy to zone 3, largely disease-free, and resistant to deer, it is one of the more generous plants available to the temperate garden.