Rosa rugosa Thunb.

Rugosa rose, Japanese rose, Ramanas rose, rugosa rosa

About plant names...

The rugosa rose is native to eastern Asia, northeastern China, Japan, Korea, and southeastern Siberia. Introduced as an ornamental plant in the 1800s, it is well established now, common along the seacoasts because it is tolerant of salt spray.

Plants: Rugosa rose is easy to identify. It is a shrub 3-6′ (1-1.8 m) high, with stems that have, to use the precise scien­tific term, zillions of thorns. Big scary ones, tiny insignif­icant ones. Far more than on any rose I have ever seen. The thorns are straight or nearly so, varying from ⅛-⅜″ (3-10 mm) in length.

Leaves: Odd pinnate clusters of 5-9 leaflets, usually 7. The clusters are 3-6″ (8-15 cm) long, and the individual leaflets are 1-1½″ (3-4 cm) long. While most rose leaves have relatively smooth surfaces, these leaves are shiny, dark green, and deeply veined (technically, rugose, hence the species name). Leaf undersides are light green from dense feltlike hairs.

Flowers: Flowers are white or pink, 2½-3½″ (6.3-8.9 cm) around, with five petals. They may be solitary on in clus­ters, and appear from June to August.

Fruits: Glossy "rose hips" up to 1″ (2.5 cm) around, ball-shaped but somewhat flattened, orange to deep red.

See our wild rose comparison guide for further information.

Edibility: Rugosa rose hips are edible raw, and used for jams and to make tea. They are high in vitamin C.

Online References:

Wikipedia

Illinois Wildflowers

CalPhotos

Hort.net

Www.edc.uri.edu

Plantdatabase.uconn.edu

Plants for a Future, a resource and information centre for edible and otherwise useful plants

References:

Peterson, Roger Tory, McKenny, Margaret, Peterson Field Guides: Wildflowers—Northeastern and North Central North America, Houghton Mifflin, 1968, p. 256

Newcomb, Lawrence, Morrison, Gordon (Illus.), Newcomb’s Wildflower Guide, Little, Brown and Company, 1977, p. 316

9/18/2009 · Acadia National Park, Bar Harbor, Maine · ≈ 7 × 10″ (16 × 24 cm) ID is uncertain

9/18/2009 · Acadia National Park, Bar Harbor, Maine · ≈ 7 × 4½″ (17 × 11 cm)

4/3/2010 · Owl’s Head Lighthouse, Owl’s Head, Maine · ≈ 2 × 1½″ (5.9 × 3.9 cm) ID is uncertain

6/10/2016 · Lobster Cove Trail, Monhegan Island, Maine

9/18/2009 · Acadia National Park, Bar Harbor, Maine · ≈ 2½ × 3½″ (6.1 × 9.1 cm) ID is uncertain

6/16/2013 · Birch Point State Park, Owl’s Head, Maine · ≈ 10 × 7″ (25 × 16 cm)

6/16/2013 · Birch Point State Park, Owl’s Head, Maine · ≈ 10 × 7″ (25 × 16 cm)

5/28/2023 · Giant’s Stairs, Bailey Island, Maine

Rose hips · 9/18/2009 · Acadia National Park, Bar Harbor, Maine · ≈ 4 × 2½″ (10 × 7 cm)

4/10/2011 · Chris & Kelley’s, Alexandria, Virginia · ≈ 6 × 4″ (15 × 10 cm)

Rosa rugosa description by Thomas H. Kent, last updated 11 Jul 2023.

© FloraFinder.org. All rights reserved.

7/29/2023 · By Constance B. Kent

6/10/2016 · Lobster Cove Trail, Monhegan Island, Maine

6/16/2013 · Birch Point State Park, Owl’s Head, Maine · ≈ 8 × 5″ (19 × 13 cm)

5/24/2010 · Eastern Promenade, Portland, Maine · ≈ 9 × 6″ (23 × 15 cm) ID is uncertain

9/18/2009 · Acadia National Park, Bar Harbor, Maine · ≈ 10 × 15″ (25 × 38 cm) ID is uncertain

5/24/2010 · Eastern Promenade, Portland, Maine · ≈ 16 × 11″ (40 × 27 cm) ID is uncertain

9/22/2020 · Giants’ Stairs, Bailey Island, Harpswell, Maine · ≈ 7 × 4½″ (18 × 12 cm)

9/18/2009 · Acadia National Park, Bar Harbor, Maine ID is uncertain

6/22/2011 · Wells, Maine · By Susan M. Kent · ≈ 4 × 2½′ (131 × 87 cm)

9/22/2020 · Giants’ Stairs, Bailey Island, Harpswell, Maine · ≈ 5 × 3½″ (13 × 8.7 cm)

6/10/2016 · Monhegan Island, Maine

9/22/2020 · Giants’ Stairs, Bailey Island, Harpswell, Maine · ≈ 1½ × 1′ (52 × 34 cm)

4/3/2010 · Owl’s Head Lighthouse, Owl’s Head, Maine · ≈ 2½ × 1¾″ (6.6 × 4.4 cm) ID is uncertain

Range:

About this map...