Dwarf Rose

More info for the term: prescribed fire

The Research Project Summary Understory recovery after low- and high-intensity
fires in northern Idaho ponderosa pine forests provides information on
prescribed fire and postfire response of plant community species
including dwarf rose.

dwarf rose
baldhip rose
dwarf wild rose
little wild rose
wood rose

More info for the term: shrub

Dwarf rose is a native, long-lived, deciduous shrub generally 3 feet
(1 m) or less in height; however, heights of 3 to 9 feet (1-3 m) have
been reported [11]. The stems are slender with straight prickles. The
compound leaves have five to seven leaflets that are 0.5 to 1 inch
(1-2.5 cm) long and 0.25 to 0.5 inch (0.6-1.2 cm) wide [4,7,9]. Dwarf
rose is rhizomatous and has a shallow root structure [25,26,29,37].

Dwarf rose has a range extending from southern British Columbia south
to the Sierra Nevada in California and east to western Montana and Idaho
[11,14,16].

More info for the term: fire regime

Dwarf rose is well adapted to low- to medium-severity fires. It
sprouts from both root crowns and rhizomes. It is also an off-site
colonizer [17,19,26].

FIRE REGIMES :
Find fire regime information for the plant communities in which this
species may occur by entering the species name in the FEIS home page under
"Find FIRE REGIMES".

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More info for the term: phanerophyte

Phanerophyte

Dwarf rose occurs predominantly in the low-shrub layer of moist,
shaded forests of British Columbia and the Pacific Northwest. It is
generally found at elevations of 5,000 feet (1,500 m) or less. It is
well adapted to mesic-coniferous understories and grows best on eastern
and southern exposures [20,27,31]. It is found in both mountainous and
riparian areas [5]. Dwarf rose is adapted to a variety of moisture
conditions but fares better on slightly dry sites [22]. It is adapted
to a short growing season.

Dwarf rose is found on coarse-textured, well-drained soils such as
sandy loams, loamy sands, and cobbly loams [1,3,15,22].

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This species is known to occur in association with the following cover types (as classified by the Society of American Foresters):

205 Mountain hemlock
206 Engelmann spruce - subalpine fir
207 Red fir
210 Interior Douglas-fir
211 White fir
212 Western larch
213 Grand fir
215 Western white pine
218 Lodgepole pine
219 Limber pine
223 Sitka spruce
224 Western hemlock
225 Western hemlock - Sitka spruce
226 Coastal true fir - hemlock
227 Western redcedar - western hemlock
228 Western redcedar
229 Pacific Douglas-fir
230 Douglas-fir - western hemlock
231 Port-Orford-cedar
232 Redwood
234 Douglas-fir - tanoak - Pacific madrone
237 Interior ponderosa pine
238 Western juniper
239 Pinyon - juniper
243 Sierra Nevada mixed conifer
244 Pacific ponderosa pine - Douglas-fir
245 Pacific ponderosa pine
247 Jeffrey pine

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This species is known to occur in the following ecosystem types (as named by the U.S. Forest Service in their Forest and Range Ecosystem [FRES] Type classification):

More info for the term: shrub

FRES 20 Douglas-fir
FRES 21 Ponderosa pine
FRES 22 Western white pine
FRES 23 Fir - spruce
FRES 24 Hemlock - Sitka spruce
FRES 25 Larch
FRES 26 Lodgepole pine
FRES 27 Redwood
FRES 29 Sagebrush
FRES 34 Chaparral - mountain shrub
FRES 35 Pinyon - juniper
FRES 36 Mountain grasslands

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This species is known to occur in association with the following plant community types (as classified by Küchler 1964):

More info for the terms: forest, shrub, woodland

K001 Spruce - cedar - hemlock forest
K002 Cedar - hemlock - Douglas-fir forest
K003 Silver fir - Douglas-fir forest
K004 Fir - hemlock forest
K005 Mixed conifer forest
K006 Redwood forest
K007 Red fir forest
K008 Lodgepole pine - subalpine forest
K010 Ponderosa shrub forest
K011 Western ponderosa forest
K012 Douglas-fir forest
K013 Cedar - hemlock - pine forest
K014 Grand fir - Douglas-fir forest
K015 Western spruce - fir forest
K024 Juniper steppe woodland
K029 California mixed evergreen forest
K034 Montane chaparral

Aboveground portions of the plant are killed by fire. Root crowns and
underground rhizomes typically survive low- to moderate-severity fires
[17,19,26,27,29,33]. Severe fires can cause damage to root crowns,
decreasing potential regrowth [13].

Dwarf rose serves as an important year-round food source for mammals,
birds, and insects. Livestock will browse dwarf rose when available
[37]. Dwarf rose is considered poor wildlife browse in parts of
California [4], but in British Columbia and the Pacific Northwest,
white-tailed deer and mule deer use of dwarf rose has been noted,
particularly in burned areas [6,11,21,35]. The fruits (hips) persist
throughout the winter, and are eaten by small mammals, birds, and
insects [4]. In northern Idaho, ruffed grouse utilized the hips, but
infrequently [18].

Dwarf rose is not listed as a dominant or subdominant species in
published classifications.

Common associates include dwarf Oregon grape (Mahonia nervosa), salal
(Gaultheria shallon), ninebark (Physocarpus malvaceus), oceanspray
(Holodiscus discolor), creeping Oregon grape (Mahonia repens), big
huckleberry (Vaccinium membranaceum), and thimbleberry (Rubus
parviflorus) [3,15,20,22].

More info for the term: shrub

Shrub

More info for the term: rhizome

Dwarf rose is highly tolerant to browsing by wildlife. Livestock
browsing, however, retards the spread of dwarf rose, possibly through
rhizome damage from trampling [36,37]. Dwarf rose appears to be
little affected by disturbances such as logging or burning [27].
Dwarf rose is not tolerant of excessive frost or harsh winters [7].

BC CA ID MT OR WA

Native Americans utilized the hips and flowers of dwarf rose. The
hips are high in vitamin C and are also a source of calcium,
phosphorous, and iron [4]. Leaves were often chewed and applied to
reduce pain and swelling, and were also used to make tea [14].

Dwarf rose is still used as a food source by the Nuxalk of British
Columbia. The wild hips are harvested for food each year from August to
October [24].

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Dwarf rose flowers in the late spring and early summer [4]. Hips
appear at the end of July and remain on the plant throughout the winter
[11,24].

More info for the terms: habitat type, root crown

Dwarf rose rapidly recovers following low- to medium-severity fires.
Top-killed plants typically sprout vigorously from the root crown or
rhizomes [17,19,25,27,29,33].

Seedlings are rarely observed in a burn area [25,29]. No seedlings were
present on clearcut 2-year-old burns in a western redcedar/queencup
beadlily (Thuja plicata/Clintonia uniflora) habitat type in northern
Idaho [26].

More info for the terms: rhizome, root crown, secondary colonizer, shrub

Small shrub, adventitious-bud root crown
Rhizomatous shrub, rhizome in soil
Secondary colonizer - off-site seed

More info for the terms: root crown, seed

Sexual reproduction: Dwarf rose attains sexual maturity at 3 to 5
years [18]. The seeds are eaten and dispersed by birds and mammals
[13,14]. Information on seed viability and germination is lacking.

Vegetative reproduction: Dwarf rose sprouts from the root crown and
rhizomes [17,25,26,29,36].

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This species can be found in the following regions of the western United States (according to the Bureau of Land Management classification of Physiographic Regions of the western United States):

1 Northern Pacific Border
2 Cascade Mountains
4 Sierra Mountains
5 Columbia Plateau
8 Northern Rocky Mountains

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More info for the term: climax

Dwarf rose is shade tolerant; it persists from the initial plant
community to climax. It flourishes initially with thinning and opening
of the canopy, but then slows in growth [12,19]. Dwarf rose grows in
full sunlight but has a higher overall survival rate in the shade [31].

The currently accepted scientific name for dwarf rose is Rosa
gymnocarpa Nutt. Recognized varieties are [16,28]:

Rosa gymnocarpa var. gymnocarpa
Rosa gymnocarpa var. pubescens Wats.

Rosa gymnocarpa Nutt.; T. & G. I'l. X. Am. 1: 461. 1840
Rosa spithamea subinermis Bngelm. Bot. Gaz. 6: 236. 1881. Rosa glaucodermis Greene, Leaflets 2: 255. 1912. Rosa abielorum Greene, Leaflets 2: 257. 1912. ? Rosa amplifolia Greene, Leaflets 2: 258. 1912.
Stem slender, 1-3 m. high, terete, brown or purplish, often very bristly and with infrastipular prickles, which are very slender, terete, sometimes not larger than the seal bristles, sometimes 1 cm. long; floral branches 1-2 dm. long, prickly or unarmed; stipules adnate, 5-15 mm. long, the lower narrow, the upper dilated, glabrous on the back, glandularciliate and dentate on the margin; rachis and petiole usually more or less glandular-hispid: leaflets 5-7 (rarely 9), from suborbicular to elliptic, 1-3.5 cm. long, thin, shining above, dull but not pale beneath, glabrous on both sides, doubly-serrate with gland-tipped teeth and sometimes glandular on the veins, reticulate with subpellucid veins; flowers usually solitary; pedicels 1-3 cm. long, slender, glabrous or more or less glandular-hispid; hypanthium ellipsoid, in fruit 4—6 mm. thick, 6-8 mm. long, sometimes becoming almost spherical; sepals ovate, acuminate, rarely caudate, 5-8 mm., sometimes 10 mm. long, purplish, glabrous on the back, tomentose on the margins and within, deciduous together with the upper part of the hypanthium and the styles; petals 10-15 mm. long, obcordate; styles few, distinct and deciduous.
Type locality: Oregon, in shady woods. Distribution: British Columbia to Montana and California.

Rosa gymnocarpa is a species of rose native to western North America. It is known by the common names dwarf rose, baldhip rose, and wood rose. It grows in shady, damp, and rich forests.