The green links below add additional plants to the comparison table. Blue links lead to other Web sites.
enable glossary links

Eglantine or sweet briar rose, Eglantine rose, rosier églantier, small-flower sweetbrier, sweet-briar rose, sweet-brier, sweetbrier rose

pygmy rose, Sierran dwarf rose, Sierran ground rose, wood rose

Habit Shrubs, erect; not rhizomatous. Subshrubs, forming open colonies.
Stems

10–30 dm;

distal branches arching, bark dark brownish red;

infrastipular prickles single or paired, curved, falcate, 6–12 × 3–7 mm, lengths varying or ± uniform, internodal prickles sometimes mixed with aciculi and glandular setae.

erect, (1–)2–4(–8) dm, openly branched;

bark often glaucous when young, gray to dark brown with age, glabrous;

infrastipular prickles paired, erect, largest ± flattened, subulate, 3–10 × 2–7 mm, base glabrous, internodal rare or absent, smaller, mixed with aciculi, eglandular.

Leaves

persistent, 4–6.5 cm;

stipules 6–10 × 2–4 mm, auricles 3–5 mm, margins stipitate-glandular, surfaces glabrous, eglandular;

petiole and rachis with pricklets, puberulent, stipitate-glandular;

leaflets 5–7(–9), viscid glands with ripe apple scent, terminal: petiolule 5–10 mm, blade mostly suborbiculate or broadly oval, 10–25 × 8–15 mm, base obtuse, margins 2- or multi-serrate, teeth 10–18 per side, apex acute to obtuse, abaxial surfaces glabrous or pubescent, usually densely viscid-glandular, adaxial green, lustrous to dull, puberulent or glabrous.

2.5–11 cm;

stipules 5–10 × 2–4 mm, auricles flared, 1–3 mm, margins entire, usually sessile-glandular, surfaces glabrous, stipitate-glandular;

petiole and rachis with sparse pricklets, glabrous or densely fine hairy hairs to 0.2 mm, densely stipitate-glandular;

leaflets (3–)5–7, terminal: petiolule 3–20 mm, blade obovate or widely elliptic-cuneate to ± orbiculate, 10–30(–50) × 8–25(–30) mm, membranous to ± leathery, base rounded-obtuse, margins 2+-crenate, teeth 8–12 per side, obtuse, gland-tipped, apex obtuse to truncate, abaxial surfaces gray-green, finely puberulent, sometimes sparsely stipitate-glandular, adaxial green, dull, finely puberulent to glabrate.

Inflorescences

panicles, 1–3(–7)-flowered.

corymbs, 1 or 2(–7)-flowered.

Pedicels

erect, 6–9 mm, densely stipitate-glandular, sometimes mixed with aciculi [and setae];

bracts 2, ovate-lanceolate to lanceolate, 15 × 5 mm, margins stipitate-glandular, surfaces glabrous, eglandular.

erect, relatively slender, 5–17 mm, glabrous, eglandular or stipitate-glandular;

bracts 1–3, lanceolate, 3–10 × 1–6 mm, margins entire, stipitate-glandular, surfaces glabrous, eglandular.

Flowers

2–4 cm diam.;

hypanthium obovoid or broadly oblong, 5–6 × 3–4 mm, eglandular, neck (0–)1–1.5 × 3–4 mm;

sepals erect or spreading, rarely reflexed, lanceolate or ovate-lanceolate, 14–18 × 2 mm, margins mostly pinnatifid, tip 3–5 × 0.5–1 mm, abaxially densely stipitate-glandular;

petals bright or deep pink, 11–20 × 11–18 mm;

carpels 25–45, styles villous or glabrous, exsert 1–2 mm beyond stylar orifice (1.2–2 mm diam.) of hypanthial disc (2.5–4 mm diam.).

2.5–3.5 cm diam.;

hypanthium ovoid-globose to widely urceolate, 4–5 × 3–4 mm, glabrous, rarely sparsely setose, usually eglandular, neck 0.5–1(–2) × 1.5–3 mm;

sepals spreading, lanceolate, 6–14 × 2–3 mm, tip 0–4 × 0.5 mm, margins entire, abaxial surfaces puberulent, usually stipitate-glandular;

petals single, deep pink, 10–20 × 10–20 mm;

carpels 10–30, styles exsert 0.5–1 mm beyond stylar orifice (1–1.5 mm diam.) of hypanthial disc (2–4 mm diam.).

Hips

dark red, subglobose to broadly ovoid, ellipsoid, or pyriform, 10–25 × 7–22 mm, glabrous, sometimes setose, eglandular;

sepals tardily deciduous, mostly erect.

scarlet, ovoid to depressed-globose to pyriform, (8–)10–18 × 7–14 mm, fleshy, glabrous, rarely sparsely setose distally, eglandular, neck 1 × 2.5–4.5 mm;

sepals persistent, erect.

Achenes

15–25, tan, 3.5–4(–5) × 2–2.5(–3) mm.

basiparietal, 1–11, cream to pale brown, 3.5–5(–6.5) × 2.5–4 mm.

2n

= 35, 42.

= 14, 28.

Rosa rubiginosa

Rosa bridgesii

Phenology Flowering May–Aug.
Habitat Open forest floors, meadow edges, rocky outcrops, midmontane forests, shade to sun
Elevation 700–2500 m (2300–8200 ft)
Distribution
from FNA
AL; AR; CA; CO; CT; DC; DE; GA; IA; ID; IL; IN; KS; KY; LA; MA; MD; ME; MI; MN; MO; MS; MT; NC; NE; NH; NJ; NY; OH; OK; OR; PA; RI; SC; TN; TX; UT; VA; VT; WA; WI; WV; WY; BC; NB; NF; NS; ON; PE; QC; Europe; w Asia; n Africa [Introduced widely worldwide]
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
CA; OR
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Varieties 2 (2 in the flora).

Rosa rubiginosa has been introduced throughout Canada and the United States except the desert southwest. Plants are compact, upright shrubs without rhizomes. Stems have stout, falcate infrastipular prickles mixed with internodal prickles, aciculi, and glandular setae. Leaflet blades are densely viscid-glandular with ripe apple scent and margins 2- or multi-serrate with stipitate glands.

Rosa eglanteria Linnaeus is a formally rejected name that pertains here.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

As here circumscribed, Rosa bridgesii is the Sierran-Cascade counterpart of R. spithamea, encompassing previous references to R. pinetorum and R. spithamea from the Sierra Nevada and most applications of R. yainacensis. The species is the low-growing, openly rhizomatous rose of midmontane forests in the Sierra Nevada and southern Cascade Range of California and Oregon. Finely puberulent leaflets help distinguish non-fruiting R. bridgesii from sympatric R. gymnocarpa, which has glabrous leaflets. Plants from Oregon differ from Sierran plants in that prickles are less likely to be infrastipular only.

In the phylogenetic analysis by A. Bruneau et al. (2007), Rosa bridgesii and R. spithamea comprise a distinct clade more closely related to Asian species than to others from western North America.

Rosa bridgesii has been conserved against R. calvaria Greene, R. covillei Greene, R. crenulata Greene, R. myriadenia Greene, and R. yainacensis Greene (B. Ertter 2007b). Only R. calvaria and R. crenulata are unambiguous synonyms of R. bridgesii; the taxonomic identity of the other names remains unresolved and may involve hybridization with other species.

On the basis of pollen size, E. W. Erlanson (1931) believed that material falling within the current circumscription of Rosa bridgesii was tetraploid (2n = 28). In a subsequent paper (1934), she reported a diploid somatic count (2n = 14) for R. calvaria, a synonym of R. bridgesii. Recent flow cytometry indicates a tetraploid condition for the sampled specimen of R. bridgesii (A. Bruneau et al., unpubl. data). It is possible that both ploidy levels are present within the species.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Key
1. Distal branches: prickle lengths varying, aciculi and setae sometimes present; hips 10–25 × 10–22 mm; flowers 2.5–4 cm diam., sepals deciduous as or after hips mature, styles usually villous, stylar orifices 1/3 diam. of rims 4 mm diam.
var. rubiginosa
1. Distal branches: prickle lengths ± uniform, aciculi and setae absent; hips 10–12 × 7–9 mm; flowers 2–3.5 cm diam., sepals deciduous before or as hips mature, styles usually glabrous, stylar orifices 1/5–1/6 diam. of rims 2.5–4 mm diam.
var. nemoralis
Source FNA vol. 9, p. 90. FNA vol. 9, p. 118.
Parent taxa Rosaceae > subfam. Rosoideae > tribe Roseae > Rosa > subg. Rosa > sect. Caninae Rosaceae > subfam. Rosoideae > tribe Roseae > Rosa > subg. Rosa > sect. Rosa
Sibling taxa
R. acicularis, R. arkansana, R. blanda, R. bracteata, R. bridgesii, R. californica, R. canina, R. carolina, R. cinnamomea, R. foliolosa, R. gallica, R. glauca, R. gymnocarpa, R. laevigata, R. lucieae, R. minutifolia, R. mollis, R. multiflora, R. nitida, R. nutkana, R. palustris, R. pinetorum, R. pisocarpa, R. rugosa, R. setigera, R. sherardii, R. spinosissima, R. spithamea, R. stellata, R. tomentosa, R. virginiana, R. woodsii
R. acicularis, R. arkansana, R. blanda, R. bracteata, R. californica, R. canina, R. carolina, R. cinnamomea, R. foliolosa, R. gallica, R. glauca, R. gymnocarpa, R. laevigata, R. lucieae, R. minutifolia, R. mollis, R. multiflora, R. nitida, R. nutkana, R. palustris, R. pinetorum, R. pisocarpa, R. rubiginosa, R. rugosa, R. setigera, R. sherardii, R. spinosissima, R. spithamea, R. stellata, R. tomentosa, R. virginiana, R. woodsii
Subordinate taxa
R. rubiginosa var. nemoralis, R. rubiginosa var. rubiginosa
Synonyms R. gymnocarpa var. pubescens, R. spithamea var. solitaria, R. spithamea var. subinermis
Name authority Linnaeus: Mant. Pl. 2: 564. (1771) Crépin ex Rydberg: Bull. Torrey Bot. Club 44: 83. (1917)
Web links