My list of great native shrubs (November 19) omitted perhaps the best of all—the Serviceberry, aka the Saskatoon or dwarf shadbush (Amelanchier alnifolia). This is the cultivar with the best fruit. (The November 19 blog has been updated, btw.)

Here’s Robin Kimmerer’s (longish) essay on the shrub, using it (as she does) as an example of the important concept of reciprocity. THE SERVICEBERRY An Economy of Abundance

Above, yew bushes, showing that we went above freezing today and snow is melting. Below, the ingredients of tonight’s “tube dinner.”