Rosa rugosa (rugosa rose, beach rose, Japanese rose, Ramanas rose, or letchberry) is a species of rose native to eastern Asia, in northeastern China, Japan, Korea and southeastern Siberia, where it grows on beach coasts, often on sand dunes. It is naturalized in much of Europe and parts of the United States and Canada. It should not be confused with Rosa multiflora, which is also known as "Japanese rose". The Latin word "rugosa" means "wrinkled", referring to the wrinkled leaves. Often used as an ornamental plant, it has become invasive in parts of Europe, North America and South America. The flowers are pleasantly scented; range in color from dark pink to white (on R. rugosa f. alba <small>(Ware) Rehder</small>), 6–9&nbsp;cm across, with somewhat wrinkled petals; flowering occurs in spring. In parts of the US, the fruits are also occasionally called beach plums, causing confusion with the actual beach plum, Prunus maritima.

The sweetly scented flowers are traditionally used to make flower jam and dessert in China. They are also used to make pot-pourri in Japan and China. It is used in traditional Chinese medicine. Beach rose hips, like those of other rose species, are edible and can be used to make jams, syrups, tea, or eaten raw.

This species hybridises readily with many other roses,

Numerous cultivars have been selected for garden use, with flower colour varying from white to dark red-purple, and with semi-double to double flowers where some or all of the stamens are replaced by extra petals. Popular examples include 'Rubra Plena' (semi-double variant, with strong clove scented dark pink petals and dark green wrinkled leaves and large round orange-red hips), which is often used for its very successful rootstock and its ornamental rose hips.

Invasive species

thumb|Dense thicket of R. rugosa in coastal [[New England, United States]]

In its native China, Rosa rugosa has been labeled as an endangered species due to a noticeable high decline in population rates of the flower, but in other continents where introduced it has become naturalized and is considered invasive. Because of its robustness, sprouting ability, and seeds that are easily spread and may survive for years, eradication is very difficult and in countries where well-established, full eradication is considered unlikely. The species can also be spread by birds and mammals that eat the berries.

It is naturalized in many parts of Europe, particularly in coastal areas of northern Europe. It was first introduced into England from Japan in 1796, and then in Germany in 1845. This was the first presence of the flower within the European continent. In 1875, Rosa rugosa was found in Denmark and then in Sweden in 1918. By 2001, the flower species had become well established within 16 European countries. Because of its invasiveness, it is illegal to sell the plant in some countries, including Denmark and Finland. On Sylt, an island in the north of Germany, it is sufficiently abundant to have become known as the "Sylt rose". R. rugosa was first introduced into North America in 1845. The first report of it being naturalized far from the location in which it was planted occurred on Nantucket in 1899 and was spreading rapidly by 1911. By 1920, the rose had been well established in Nantucket and in Connecticut. R. rugosa has also become naturalized in Argentina, Australia and New Zealand. In Mandarin Chinese, it is called méiguì huā () "rose" or cì méiguì () "thorned rose". In Korean, the species is called haedanghwa (, ), literally "flowers near the seashore".

References

  • hort.net profile Rosa rugosa