ABNC’s Grassland Blog Series

Enjoy Our Bountiful Native Saskatoon Blossoms and Berries

By Roseanne Van Ee
The Okanagan Nature Nut

Our hills come alive each spring with flamboyant, brilliant yellow Wild Sunflower bouquets (AKA Arrow-leaf Balsamroot, Spring Sunflower) amid splashy, sparkling white-blossomed Saskatoon bushes (AKA Serviceberry or Juneberry). We enjoy these sensationally spectacular, colourful displays on warm, dry, undeveloped open grassland hillside slopes throughout the valley in April and May. Once the Saskatoon flowers are pollinated, bunches of berries soon start to appear. Then by early summer, the plentiful dark purple/blue ripe, sweet berries are a real treat for people, bears, birds, squirrels, deer and more. If you see Prickly-Pear Cactus blooming in June or July, the Saskatoon berries should be ready to pick.

Before European settlement, Saskatoons were so plentiful that they provided a deliciously abundant food source and edicine for the original First Nations Syilx/Okanagan people when most other vegetation was still unavailable. The Okanagan people called them Siya (pronounced like “see ya” later). ‘Saskatoon’ may be an Anglicized version of the Blackfoot name for this bush ‘mis-ask-a-tomina’ meaning ‘fruit of the tree of many branches’. The original Okanagan people had a myriad of uses for these plentiful berries. They enjoyed them freshly picked; a real treat for children. They often mashed and dried them into fruit leather and pemmican. But many were dried to use in soups and stews, or used as a sweetener with other foods or rehydrated later. And the dried berries were a popular trade item with coastal people. The berries’ size, texture and taste can vary from plant to plant. The Okanagan people recognized eight different Saskatoon varieties depending on where they grew, their shrub height (1-7 metres tall) and berry sweetness. These profuse berries are rich in antioxidants, anti-inflammatory, antiviral and astringent properties. They contain calcium, iron, vitamin C plus other minerals. and are high in fibre. Ungulates browse on Saskatoon bushes throughout winter.

Pick Saskatoons to eat fresh or add to muffins, pancakes, puddings and pies, or make delicious jams or syrup. Swallow their small seeds or spit them out. I enjoy picking them. And any that I don’t eat fresh I collect to freeze on cookie sheets then store in yogurt containers for later use. They’re delicious canned too. My favourite is canned Saskatoons with French vanilla ice cream in February.

I also love making no-bake Saskatoon pie:
Pour 1 cup fresh berries into a graham cracker pie crust
Cover another cup of Saskatoon berries in water in a pot with 2 tablespoons of corn starch, cook and stir until the juice is clear (not cloudy) Adding sugar is optional.
Pour this over the pieshell berries and let cool.
Top with whipped cream, Greek yogurt or French vanilla ice cream

Robin Wall Kimmerer, author of the award-winning book, Braiding Sweetgrass, has a delightful, little new book, The Serviceberry, about their abundance and reciprocity. Locally, Mikaela Cannon includes Saskatoon expertise in her book, Foraging (as a way of life). Our library has them all.

Saskatoons are easily propagated from wild seedlings or rooted cuttings for a dashing spring display and copious summer berries. This is a tremendous way to Rewild/NatureScape your yard to attract native pollinators and provide food for wild birds and butterflies, and for yourself. I love watching our hillsides spring to life, then feasting on these berries. How about you?

Roseanne is a long-time professional naturalist and eco-tour guide who delights in sharing and celebrating our amazing natural environment. Her desire is that you get out to enjoy and understand our fascinating natural world. Roseanne is locally renowned from her many years as a BC Parks naturalist, newspaper columnist, Allan Brooks Nature Centre founder, and environmental & outdoor ed trainer for teachers and leaders and as an ecotour guide. With an extensive background combining Environmental Sciences and Recreation and Education, she shares her wealth of knowledge and skills in helping others to discover our natural world in a fun and informative field trips, summer camps or other public event tours. She is always happy to answer any questions or have a chat about our ecosystems!