Beach rose flowers are losing their petals with a little help from Japanese beetles, but the remaining large, fleshy seed pods known as rose “hips” are looking very good this year.
This plant (Rosa rugosa) originally was imported from Asia to shore up eroding beaches. It has naturalized itself and grows wild along coastal areas, much to the chagrin of property owners who find it almost impossible to get rid of the dense, invasive shrubbery. Nonetheless, the plant’s rose hips are valued by many for their high content of antioxidants, especially Vitamin C, and polysaccharide-peptides.
The origin of the description the seed pods of rose plants as “rose hips” is unclear. It apparently has no relation to the human body. Most etymologists seem to trace it back to the pronunciation of the Greek word for a similar plant that has large seed pods, the dog rose (Rosa canina), which is native to Europe and Asia. In Medieval times, apparently, parts of the dog rose plant were used to make salves for dog bites, hence it’s Latin and English name.
(Images taken in Brooklin, Maine, on August 12 and 13, 2024.)