Bill's Botanical Forays

About 15 years ago, I spotted two colonies of white roses across the street from our house. They were not the Multiflora Rose (Rosa multiflora) which had already mostly finished because blooming, and this rose was in its prime.

 

 

 

It keys it out to Memorial Rose (Rosa wichuraiana) Crép. It is native to East Asia, and has a natural sprawling, but not climbing, habit which makes it attractive as a ground cover. These two colonies could be considered persistent/established and spreading.

These are some photos I took of this simple but elegant flower. There are some cultivar forms of this species including one with pink tinged petals and a double petal form.

 

 

In the fall, it produces small red hips. It is named after the German botanist Max Ernst Wichura. Its scientific name is synonymous with Rosa luciae Franch. & Rochebr., which is sometimes seen in literature.