![Rosa rugosa flowers on 'Frau Dagmar Hastrup' (C. Pearson-Mims)](wrorufhb.gif)
Rosa rugosa
Rugosa rose
- Light: Full sun or partial shade.
- Size: 3-6 feet tall, with similar spread.
- Plant habit: Deciduous, thorny, dense, mounding shrub.
- Leaves: Bright, glossy green, compound leaves with a
crinkled (rugose!)
appearance. May develop attractive fall color, including red, orange,
yellow, and bronze.
- Flowers: Bloom begins in early summer and continues
throughout the
season until frost. May bloom continuously or with brief rest periods.
Flowers may be white, pink, reddish purple, or yellow, depending on
cultivar.
Some cultivars have doubled blossoms. Most are highly fragrant and
attract
bees. Flowers are 2 to 4 inches wide.
![Rosa rugosa fruit (C. Pearson-Mims)](wrorus.gif)
- Fruit: Most cultivars produce showy fruit called "hips."
The hips are bright reddish orange and can be more than 1 inch across.
Plants
can have both fruits and flowers at the same time.
- Culture: Grows well in a wide range of soil types,
including sandy
ones. Withstands difficult conditions, including salt, drought, and
extreme cold.
- Maintenance: Rugosa roses don't require the specialized
pruning
that the more traditional roses, such as hybrid teas and grandifloras,
need. An occasional branch may need to be removed to maintain overall
shape and appearance.
- Pests/Diseases: Relatively insect- and disease-free,
depending on cultivar. May get aphids.
- Other: Try to find plants grown on their own roots, to
avoid problems with winter injury at the graft union.
- Cultivars: We have had success with these rugosas:
- 'Frau Dagmar Hastrup'
- var. rubra
Return to:
Water-conserving plant list
or to Shrubs
Page creators:
Virginia I. Lohr
and Caroline H. Pearson-Mims
Dept. of Hort &
LA, Washington St. Univ.
E-mail: pearson@wsu.edu
WSU's
Disclaimer
& Freedom of Expression Policy
Page updated July 5, 2007