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["Richard Moyer" <ramoyer@gmail.com>]

Michele wrote: I don't currently have Amelanchiers although I want to make room for a couple. I always figured they needed decent drainage, although several authorities suggest that at least A. Canadensis does well in wet situations, since it's native to wetter sites. Any thoughts?   Since the cultivars in the trade are often hybrids, I'd like to hear your experiences.  Do you have cultivars that have succumbed to Phytophthora or other root rots?  Cultivars that grow really well in wet soils?  Cultivars that are really, really great in very dry sites?

Michele,

We put in about 5 Amelanchier selections 10-12 years ago.  By far the most prolific and adaptable has been A. canadensis from Lawyer's Nursery.  Does well in the wettest site in my yard that killed a jujube, and also does well surrounded by pavement against a southern wall, where the jujubes thrive.  We pick native Amelanchier in the S. Appalachian highlands, along creekbanks in soggy ground.  Hence at least some are quite adaptable, and by our experience the A. canadensis bushes from Lawyer's are a winner for us.

Richard Moyer

Zone 6, East TN, 1800 ft