Wild Rose, Wood’s Rose, Rosa woodsia, Rose Family (Rosaceae)

Found on dry slopes, along roadsides
Seen blooming in June near MM 209 by Hwy 84 in Abiquiu
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Wild Rose grows in thickets to several feet high with numerous prickly stems. The showy flowers can range from pale pink to deep rose and have a delightful, delicate scent. The fruits of the Wild Rose are known as rose hips and are edible after several frosts. The hips are a good source of vitamin C and are consumed by birds, bears, and other animals, as well as humans. Wild Rose has been heavily used for food and a variety of other purposes by Native Americans The hips can be made into jam, jelly, syrup and tea. The roots make an orange dye. A poultice of various plant parts may be used for burns, boils, sores, cuts, bee-stings and wounds. A decoction of the roots was used to treat diarrhea. Branches were used to sweep out the grave before the corpse was lowered into it to prevent someone else's spirit from being buried with the dead person. Branches were also boiled in water and used to soak fishing lines and nets to obtain good luck. There is much more. Source.

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