Rosa glauca

What to Eat

Edible parts: Fruit, Seeds

The fruit can be eaten raw or cooked, though it is tough and has little flesh. It measures about 15mm in diameter, with only a thin layer of flesh surrounding the many seeds. Care should be taken when eating the fruit due to known hazards. The seeds are a good source of vitamin E and can be ground and mixed with flour or added to other foods as a supplement; seed hairs must be removed before use.

Known Hazards

Where to Find It

Plants are frost hardy. It suits hardiness zones 3-10.

Australia, Balkans, Bosnia, Europe, Pyrenees, Slovenia, Yugoslavia,

How to Identify

A shrub. It grows 1.5-2.2 m high and spreading 1.2-1.8 m wide. The stems arch over. The are purple red when young. The leaves are cool purple-blue. The flowers are pink and like stars. They occur in clusters. The fruit are hips which are red and occur in clusters.

How to Grow

Succeeds in most soils, preferring a circumneutral soil and a sunny position. Grows well in heavy clay soils. Dislikes water-logged soils. Grows well with alliums, parsley, mignonette and lupins. Garlic planted nearby can help protect the plant from disease and insect predation. Grows badly with boxwood. There is some confusion over the correct name for this species. Its most common name, R. rubrifolia, is invalid so R. glauca is used instead, though there is some doubt as to the validity of this name. Hybridizes freely with other members of this genus. Plants in this genus are notably susceptible to honey fungus.

Propagation: Rose seed often takes two years to germinate, as it may require a warm period following a cold spell to mature the embryo and break down the seedcoat. One way to reduce this time is to scarify the seed and place it for 2–3 weeks in damp peat at 27–32°c until it has imbibed, then keep it at 3°c for the following 4 months, by which time germination should begin. Seed harvested green — fully developed but before drying on the plant — and sown immediately may germinate in late winter, though this method had not been fully tested as of 1988. Seed sown fresh in a cold frame sometimes germinates in spring but may take 18 months. Stored seed should be sown as early in the year as possible and stratified for 6 weeks at 5°c; it may still take 2 years to germinate. Prick out seedlings into individual pots when large enough to handle. Plant out in summer if plants exceed 25cm, otherwise overwinter in a cold frame and plant out in late spring. Half-ripe cuttings with a heel taken in July in a shaded frame give a high success rate; overwinter in the frame and plant out in late spring. Mature cuttings of the current season's growth, selected as pencil-thick shoots around 20–25cm long in early autumn, can be planted in a sheltered spot outdoors or in a cold frame; they take up to 12 months to establish but succeed at a high rate. Suckers can be divided during dormancy and planted directly into permanent positions. Layering takes 12 months.

Medicinal Uses

The fruit is a very rich source of vitamins and minerals, particularly vitamins A, C and E, flavanoids, and other bio-active compounds. It is also a fairly good source of essential fatty acids, which is unusual for a fruit. It is being investigated for its potential to reduce the incidence of cancer and to halt or reverse cancer growth.

Other Uses

Plants can be grown as a hedge.

Rosa glauca (syn. Rosa rubrifolia), the red-leaved rose or redleaf rose, is a species of rose native to the mountains of central and southern Europe, from the Spanish Pyrenees east to Bulgaria, and north to Germany and Poland. It is also found as an introduced species as far north as Scandinavia and Finland.

Notes

There are about 150 Rosa species and many cultivated varieties.

More from Rosaceae

Acaena anserinifolia

Bidgee widgee, Buzzy, New Zealand Bur

No photo

Acaenia anserinifolia - (J.R.Forst.&G.Forst.)Druce.

Pirri-Pirri Bur

Adenostoma sparsifolium

Red shanks, Ribbonwood

Agrimonia eupatoria

Agrimony, Salt and Pepper

Agrimonia odorata

Adour agrimony, Liver-wort

Agrimonia pilosa

Indian chestnut, Agrimony