PNW Native
Nootka Rose grows up to 10 ft. tall, with a pair of large prickles at each leaf base. Leaves are alternate, compound, and deciduous. Leaflets are round with serrated borders. Flowers are pink, 2-5 in. wide, 5-petaled, and form at branch tips. Fruits range from red to purplish-red, 0.5-1 in. wide; rosehips are filled with hairy achenes. (Mackinnon & Pojar, 1994) The rose grows from BC to CA. (Mathews, 2021)
Nootka rose prefers open habitats from low to middle elevations. The rose is found on the west side of the Cascades, and it prefers moist, open areas, roadsides, and riparian environments. (Lloyd & Chambers, 2014) The rosehips provide food for white-tailed deer, mule deer, moose, elk, caribou, sheep, bears, coyotes, and rodents and are preferred by elk, deer, and squirrels. Since the rosehips stay on the shrub through winter, they are important wintertime graze. Some small mammals also use the twigs and leaves as a food source. Nootka rose thickets provide important cover and nesting grounds for smaller animals. Nootka roses are preferred by bees over non-native rose cultivars with double flowers. (Reed, 1993)
Nootka rose branches and leaves were used by tribes in the region for steaming, flavoring, and protecting food from burning, and the shoots were eaten in spring. Various remedies were made using Nootka rose including: an eye rinse for cataracts made with bark strips, mashed and boiled rosehips as a treatment for a baby’s diarrhea, and a poultice for sore eyes made from mashed rose leaves by the Makah tribe. (Mackinnon & Pojar, 1994) Roots were used for cordage and fishing line. The Hanaksialah people north of what is now called Vancouver Island wore costumes covered in Nootka roses as well as other blooming flowers during their new years celebration that takes place around March. (Turner, 2015)
Nootka rose has utility in revegetation and minimizing soil erosion due to its extensive rhizome production. It has helped rehabilitate disturbed sites in the Columbia River Gorge. As an ornamental, Nootka rose’s spread by rhizomes should be considered so it doesn’t overtake and choke out other forms of plant life. Rosehips are naturally high in vitamin C and make delicious jellies, jams, and spreads. (Pavek & Skinner, 2013)
Lloyd, T.A., and Hamersley Chambers, F. (2014). Wild berries of Washington and Oregon. Lone Pine Publishing International.
MacKinnon, A., & Pojar, J. (1994). Plants of the Pacific Northwest Coast: Washington, Oregon, British Columbia & Alaska. Lone Pine Publishing : Partners Publishing : B.C. Ministry of Forests.
Mathews, D. (2021). Cascadia revealed: A guide to the plants, Animals & Geology of the Pacific Northwest Mountains. Timber Press, Inc.
