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

cluster rose, cluster wild rose, peafruit rose, swamp rose

Habit Shrubs, erect; not rhizomatous. Shrubs, loosely clustered or in dense thickets.
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.

ascending to erect, (2–)4–20(–25) dm, openly branched;

bark ± glaucous when young, dark reddish brown or dull red with age outer layer may exfoliate as thin ash gray peel, glabrous;

infrastipular prickles usually paired, erect, rarely curved, usually subulate, 2–10 × 2–4 mm, base glabrous, internodal prickles rare or absent.

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.

5–10(–13) cm;

stipules 8–22 × 2–5 mm, auricles flared, 2–5 mm, margins usually entire, sometimes erose or lobed, finely ciliolate to ciliate, eglandular, surfaces glabrous or sparsely pubescent, sparsely stipitate-glandular or eglandular;

petiole and rachis sometimes with pricklets, glabrous or hairy hairs to 1 mm, sometimes stipitate-glandular;

leaflets 5–7(–9), terminal: petiolule 8–12 mm, blade elliptic-ovate, (15–)20–45(–60) × 9–16(–20) mm, widest at or below middle, membranous, base cuneate to obtuse, margins 1(–2)-serrate, teeth 12–22 per side, on distal 3/4–4/5 of margin, acute, eglandular, apex acute, sometimes obtuse, abaxial surfaces pale green, usually sparsely pubescent, eglandular, adaxial green, dull, glabrous, rarely puberulent.

Inflorescences

panicles, 1–3(–7)-flowered.

corymbs, sometimes panicles or solitary flowers, 1–12-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, sometimes recurved, slender, 10–22 mm, usually glabrous, sometimes finely puberulent, eglandular, rarely stipulate-glandular;

bracts 2–3, lanceolate, 8–14 × 3–6 mm, margins entire, sometimes serrate, irregularly stipitate-glandular and/or erose, surfaces glabrous or pubescent, 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.).

2.4–3.8 cm diam.;

hypanthium ovoid-urceolate, 3–5 × 2.5–3.5 mm, glabrous, rarely setose, eglandular, neck (0–)0.5–1 × 2 mm;

sepals spreading, ovate-lanceolate, 10–17 × 1.5–3 mm, tip 3–7(–10) × 1.5–2.5 mm, margins entire, abaxial surfaces sometimes puberulent, densely or sparsely stipitate-glandular, rarely eglandular;

petals single, pink to deep pink, 12–18 × 10–18 mm;

stamens 75;

carpels 22–35, styles exsert 1–2 mm beyond stylar orifice (1 mm diam.) of hypanthial disc (3.5 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, globose, sometimes subglobose or ovoid, 7–15 × 7–13 mm, fleshy, glabrous, eglandular, rarely setose- or stipitate-glandular, neck (0–)1–1.5 × 1.5–3.5 mm;

sepals persistent, erect.

Achenes

15–25, tan, 3.5–4(–5) × 2–2.5(–3) mm.

basiparietal, 5–35, tan, 3–4 × 1.5–2.5 mm.

2n

= 35, 42.

= 14, 28.

Rosa rubiginosa

Rosa pisocarpa

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; WA; BC
[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.)

Subspecies 2 (2 in the flora).

(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
1. Inflorescences (1–)3–12-flowered; sepal abaxial surfaces usually stipitate-glandular, tips to 10 mm; infrastipular prickles (1–)2; hips usually globose, rarely subglobose, abruptly narrowed to necks 1.5–3 mm diam.; leaflets most commonly 7, terminal blade 15–35 mm.
subsp. pisocarpa
1. Inflorescences 1–3(–10+)-flowered; sepal abaxial surfaces usually eglandular, rarely stipitate-glandular, tips to 7 mm; infrastipular prickles 0–1(–2); hips subglobose to ovoid, gradually to abruptly narrowed to necks 2.5–3.5 mm diam.; leaflets most commonly 5, terminal blade 20–45(–60) mm.
subsp. ahartii
Source FNA vol. 9, p. 90. FNA vol. 9, p. 109.
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. 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. 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
R. pisocarpa subsp. ahartii, R. pisocarpa subsp. pisocarpa
Name authority Linnaeus: Mant. Pl. 2: 564. (1771) A. Gray: Proc. Amer. Acad. Arts 8: 382. (1872)
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