This upright, bushy shrub to small tree 3–16 feet tall (1–5 m) greets spring with clusters of snow-white flowers as the leaves begin to emerge. Note the numerous, branching stems, strongly-veined alternate leaves with coarse teeth, and blackish berries; thicket forming.

FLOWERS: April–June; fruit July–September. Short, elongated clusters erect to drooping, on branch tips with 3–6 flowers; 5 narrow, spoon-shaped, white petals, 1/4–3/4 inch long (6–9 mm); 10–15 stamens. Fruit a fleshy, juicy pome 1/4–3/8 inch diameter (7–10 mm), red becoming dark-purplish.

LEAVES: Alternate, stalked; blades oval to oblong, 3/4–1 1/2 inches long (2–4 cm); upper half serrated, surfaces veined, bottom usually finely hairy by flowering, tip rounded.

HABITAT: Desert canyons, dry foothills, mountain slopes; pinyon juniper woodlands, ponderosa-Douglas fir, aspen forests.

ELEVATION: 6,000–10,000 feet (1828–3048 m)

RANGE: Rocky Mts. and all states westward.

SIMILAR SPECIES: Western Serviceberry, A. alninfolia, in northern mountains of NM, has clusters with 5–15 flowers,  fruit 3/8–5/8 inch diameter (10–15 mm), and leaves that are hairy when young and usually hairless as flowering progresses

NM COUNTIES: Widespread, common in mid-elevation, dry habitats in NM mountains: Bernalillo, Catron, Cibola, Colfax, Dona Ana, Eddy, Grant, Harding, Los Alamos, Luna, McKinley, Mora, Rio Arriba, San Juan, San Miguel, Sandoval, Santa Fe, Sierra, Taos, Torrance.