Wild Roses
There are roses and there are roses. Roses that grow in ditches and in old homestead sites, or on a barnyard fence are real ROSES. Lovers of hybrids, please excuse me, it is my passion for the week. These are the roses that no one has to attend to and have been there for generations. They hang thick with rose hips in the fall and feed the wildlife in the winter. In their thickets are homes of birds that return year after year to a safe haven. Some of these roses are not always easy to find in suburban living, although they are excellent specimens to use as gentle hedgerows between neighboring properties, bank cover on challenging rocky hillsides, and superior plants to bring birds and beneficial insects into the landscape. Some of the lesser-known roses are described as well as some which are in common usages as hardy landscaping roses.
Rosa xanthina is also known as the Manchu Rose originating in central China dated from 1899. It develops into a large shrub with upright and arching canes that flowers in late spring with 2" sulfur yellow flowers. This shrub has tough ornamental red thorns set on brilliant red stems. Leave spent flowers unpruned to allow the rose to develop abundant 1/2 inch wide by 1 inch long scarlet red hips in winter months. Remove any broken, damaged or diseased wood when pruning, and remove the oldest wood if flowering is becoming sparse. A light overall pruning is all that is usually required to keep this shrub at its peak.
Attention Collectors: Rosa acicularis, Prickly Rose is a rose to purple-pink fragrant single blooms with small red rose hips in late summer. This is the most northern growing rose and grows circumpolar around the planet. It has dense bristles and hooked prickles. Adventurers may want to try this unusual rose although it may not be long lived since we don't get arctic chills, but even a few years of it's company would be a treat.
Here is a native throughout the Central U. S. -Rosa arkansana, the Prairie Rose, a low growing to erect subshrub growing from 1' to 4' tall with clusters of deep pink to light red blooms followed by red hips. Excellent for bank stabilization and soil conservation as well as wildlife habitat.
Another country girl rose is the Rosa carolina, the Pasture Rose, a strong 3' rose that is used as rootstock to hybrid varieties. It blooms pink-white flowers with small scarlet fruit that is used medicinally.
A rose to naturalize on dry slopes is found in Rosa davidii, a large shrub up to 10' with stout red prickles and heavy clusters of rosy pink blooms followed by pendulous rose hips.
The Rosa gymnocarpa, Wood Rose, native to California, BC and the upper central U. S. is a shade tolerant rose which rises to 8' fall on erect bristly stems. 11/2" blooms of rose pink appear in early summer and red pear shaped hips develop in the fall.
The Rosa multiflora, thornless Japanese Rose is covered with white blossoms followed by small red berries for winter bird food. Its arching habit is excellent for a dense hedge. This is also a good rootstock to graft onto.
Another Alaskan, the Rosa nutkana, the Nootka rose, is a shrub 3' to 5' tall. Also found in the Rocky Mountains, it has large 2" bright pink flowers, and red fruit.
Rosa pfanders, the Dog Rose, used as rootstock due to its strength and disease resistance; its fruit is used medicinally. The flowers are pink-white. I have been watching for this rose to appear to add to my odd collection of plants. The name intrigues me.
Rosa rubiginosa, AKA, Rosa eleganteria, the Sweetbriar Rose is a pleasant vigorous, informal 6' hedge that has sweet scented foliage and rose pink flowers.
Rosa sericea omeinsis, Omei Rose, is a huge 12' upright shrub with finely divided fern-like foliage, bristly red prickles, and small white blooms followed by ornamental yellow-red hips, another interesting collectors item.
Rosa spinosissima, Scotch Rose, is as it says, very spiny and suckers profusely. Growing to 5', it flowers mostly white with dark maroon fruit. A very good barrier plant.
The hard- to- get- to areas that only mountain goats can reach would be a good place to plant some of these very hardy roses, or along an alley access, or bordering a veggie garden, or background to smaller perennial plantings. Wild roses are beautiful year round.
Carol de Maintenon is a member of Garden Writers of America and owner of Benicia Garden & Nursery.
