VOLUME:16ISSUE:1

SPRING2012

ROSES(part2):TimetogetSerious!
Botanicalinfo:
RosesareawoodyperennialofthegenusRosa,withinthefamilyRosaceae.ThenamerosecomesfromFrench,itselffrom Latinrosa.Thereareover100species.Theyformagroupoferectshrubs,andclimbing/trailingplants,withstemsthatare oftenarmedwithsharppricklesthesessharpobjectsarecommonlycalled"thorns",however,theyaretechnicallyprickles. Flowersarelargeandshowy,incoloursrangingfromwhitethroughyellowsandreds.MostspeciesarenativetoAsia,with smallernumbersnativetoEurope,NorthAmerica,andnorthwestAfrica.Species,cultivarsandhybridsareallwidelygrown fortheirbeautyandfragrance.Roseplantsrangeinsizefromcompact,miniatureroses,toclimbersreaching7meters. Mostrosesaredeciduousbutafew(particularlyfromSoutheastAsia)areevergreenornearlyso.Theflowersofmost specieshavefivepetals,withtheexceptionofRosasericea,whichusuallyhasonlyfour.Theaggregatefruitoftheroseisa berrylikestructurecalledarosehip.Manyofthedomesticcultivarsdonotproducehips,astheflowersaresotightly petalledthattheydonotprovideaccessforpollination.Thehipsofmostspeciesarered,butafew(e.g.Rosa pimpinellifolia)havedarkpurpletoblackhips. Wildrosesarehostplantsforanumberofpestsanddiseases.Cultivatedrosesareoftensubjecttoseveredamagefrom insect,arachnidandfungalpestsanddiseases.Inmanycasestheycannotbeusefullygrownwithoutregulartreatmentsto controltheseproblems.

Uses:
Rosesarebestknownasornamentalplantsgrownfortheirflowersinthegarden,sometimesindoors.Theyalsohave significantcommercialvaluebothtothecutflowermarketandperfumery/cosmeticindustry.Therosepetalsorasthe extractedroseoil/rosewater,alongwiththerosehipsalsohaveavarietyofmedicinaluses.

CutFlowers:Generallytheyareharvestedandcutwheninbud,andheldinrefrigeratedconditionsuntilreadyfor
displayattheirpointofsale.Significantquantitiesaregrownintropicalcountries,andshippedbyairtomarketsacrossthe world.Rosepetalsareedibleandcanbeaddedtosaladsorusedasediblegarnishes.

Perfumery/RoseOil:Roseperfumesaremadefromattarofrosesorroseoil,whichisamixtureofvolatileessentialoils
obtainedbysteamdistillingthecrushedpetalsofroses.TheproductiontechniqueoriginatedinPersiathenspreadthrough ArabiaandIndia,andmorerecentlyintoEasternEurope.InBulgaria,IranandGermany,damaskroses(Rosadamascena 'Trigintipetala')areused.InotherpartsoftheworldRosacentifoliaiscommonlyused.Theoilistransparentpaleyellowor yellowgreyincolour.'RoseAbsolute'issolventextractedwithhexaneandproduces,darkyellowtoorangecolouroil.

RoseWater:Abyproductofroseoilproduction,isusedforcooking,cosmetics,medicineandinreligiouspractices.Itis
widelyusedinAsianandMiddleEasterncuisine.InFrancethereismuchuseofrosesyrup,mostcommonlymadefroman extractofrosepetals.InNorthAmerica,thisFrenchrosesyrupisusedtomakerosesconesandmarshmallows.

RoseHips:Thefruitofsomespecies,isusedasasourceofVitaminC.Rosacaninahipsaremadeintojam,jelly,and
marmalade,orarebrewedfortea,primarilyfortheirhighvitaminCcontent.Theyarealsopressedandfilteredtomake rosehipsyrup.RosehipsarealsousedtoproduceRosehipseedoil,whichisusedinskinandmakeupproducts.

Properties:
Roseisanastringent,toningandaromaticherbwhichhelpstocontrolbacterialinfectionsandpromoteshealing.Ithasa longhistoryuseinfolkremedies,especiallyintheareaofskincare.Consideredsuitableforallskintypes,butitis especiallyvaluablefordry,sensitiveoragingskins.Ithasatonicandastringenteffectonthecapillariesjustbelowtheskin surface,whichmakesitusefulindiminishingtherednesscausedbyenlargedcapillaries. Therosealsooffersasoothingpropertytothenervesandemotional/psychologicalstateofmind.Itisregardedasa mildsedativeandantidepressant.Itisincreasinglyusedintreatmentsforconditionsofstress:nervoustension,peptic ulcers,heartdisease,amongothers.Thereisindicationthatroseessencemayalsopositivelyinfluencedigestion,bile secretion,wombdisordersandcirculation.Inaddition,ateamadewithrosepetalsoftensoothesamildsorethroat.Rosa chinensishaslongbeenusedinChinesetraditionalmedicine.Thisandotherspecieshavebeenusedforstomach problems,andarebeinginvestigatedforcontrollingcancergrowth. Thefruits/hipsofmanyspecieshavesignificantlevelsofvitaminsandhavebeenusedasafoodsupplement.Rosehips areanexcellentsourceofvitaminsA,B3,C,DandE.Theyalsocontainbioflavonoids,citricacid,flavonoids,fructose, malicacid,tanninsandzinc.Takenintheformofteatheyaregoodforinfections,particularlybladderinfections.

MoreaboutRoseOil/RoseWater:
Rosepetalsarefulloffragranceandarethepartoftheplantusedinextractingroseoilthroughdistillation.Three varietiesofroseareusedincommercialproductionofroseoilandrosewater:RosaCentifolia,RosaDamascenaandRosa Gallica.Theproductwillvaryslightlyincolourbetweenthesespeciesbutthetherapeuticbenefitsarethesame.Roseoil isprobablythemostexpensiveessentialoilavailable,thisismainlybecauseistakesmanypoundsofRosepetalsto produceanounceofoilaswellasthefactthatRosepetalsarehighlywatersoluble,therebyrequiringthedistillery processatleasttwice.Fortunately,onlyasmallamountofroseoilisneededintherapeuticpreparations. Roseoilhasnumerouspropertiesincludingbactericide,antiseptic,stimulatingandantiinflammatory.Thesefour propertiescomplementoneanotherwhenusedasaskintonictosoothe,cleanseandreduceminorsurface inflammationsespeciallyrecognizedforsuchuseincommercialproductssuchascosmetics,soapsandtoiletries.The antibacterialpropertyhelpsregulateskinoilproduction.Thefragranceofroseoilisliterallyanaturalantimicrobialand combinedwithitsantiinflammatorypropertiesisfavouredinlavishskinsoaps.AccordingtoscientificanalysisfromIndia, roseoilexudesextremelyhighantioxidantactivities.Althoughroseoilisnontoxic,strongsolutionscanirritatethefaceor skinandisnotusedinitsconcentratedstate,butratherinacarrieroilsuchasalmond,jojoba,andgrapeseed. Inherbalfolklore,roseoilisusedtotreatmaleandfemaledisorderssuchasimpotency,irregularmensesand menopause.AccordingtoBritishPharmacopoeias,extendeduseofroseoilhasbeenfoundtoincreaseoverallsperm count.Herbalfolkloreusesroseoilinremediestotreathayfever,nausea,asthma,soremouthsandthroats.Accordingto Ayurvedicmedicinespecialists,roseoilisusedinthegeneralpracticesofskinaugmentationtotreatissuessuchasacne. Rosewaterorrosesyrupisabyproductoftheroseoilproduction,itisthehydrosolportionofthedistillateofrosepetals. Itiscommonlyusedtoflavourfood,asacomponentinsomecosmeticandmedicalpreparations,andforreligious purposesthroughoutEuropeandAsia.RoseWaterisalessexpensivewaytoprovideskincare.Itisverysoothingto irritatedskin.Itisalsoatonicandantiseptic.Rosewaterhasbeenshowntobeveryvaluableasanantisepticineye infections. Generallyroseoil/rosewaterareusedtopicallyratherthaninternallywiththeexceptionofAromatherapy.Roseoil dropsaddedtoaroomdiffusercanhelpeliminatestressfulemotionsprovidingacomfortingatmosphere.Roseoilaroma isintenseandfloral.Sincethescentlingers,roseoilshouldbeusedsparinglytopreventheadachesinindividualsless tolerableorsensitivetothearoma.Oneortwodropstostartcaneasilydothetrick. Touseroseoilfortopicalpurposes(i.e.skincare),useapproximately8dropsofessentialroseoilforevery10mlof carrieroil.Applydirectlyontoskin. Rosewatermaybeusedwithabandon....thereisnosuchthingastoomuchofthisgoodthing!

Add45dropsofroseoiltoawarmbathtohelpalleviateemotionalstressassociatedwithdepressionandmood swings.Itwillalsosoothetheskin. Blendingupto8dropsofroseoilwithacarrieroilcanbeusedforanaromatherapymassage.Concentratingonthe foreheadandtempleswithgentlecircularpressurecanalleviatesymptomsofpainandstressassociatedtohangovers, achybodyandnausea.

Makeyourownrosewater:
Takealargepot,insertacleanbrickorrock,fillwithrosepetalsaroundthebrick.Coverwithwaterandplaceasmall glassdishontopofthebrick.Ontopofthepotputastainlessbowlandfillwithice.Simmeraboutthreehours dependinghowmanypetalsyouhave,replacingtheiceasneeded.Thebowlwiththeicewillcondensethesteamand dripdownintotheglassbowl.Thewaterintheglassbowlisyourrosewaterontopwillbealayerofoil.Thisisthe essentialoil.Youcanseparatethesetouseasdesired.

MoreaboutRosehipsRosarubiginosaaswellasR.caninaandR.Laevigata
RosarubiginosaisalsoknownasRosaeglanteria,sweetbriar,aswellaseglantine,whileRosacaninaisknownasdogrose andRosalaevigataasCherokeerose.Rosehipsareusedtotreatailmentsandproblems,suchascolds,fluandgastritis.It isusedforfightingwrinklesandasaremedyforsundamagedskinandtoreducescars.Theripefruits(rosehips)areused andasuperioroilisextractedfromtheRosarubiginosafruit.TheRosacaninafruit(rosehips)haveirritanthairsthatmust beremovedbeforeuse.Theripefruitsareastringentandacidicandcontainflavonoids,tannins,carotenoids&volatileoil. Internaluse:ThefruitsofRosacaninaareusedforcolds,influenza,scurvy,gastritisandtocontroldiarrhea,whilethe fruitsfromRosalaevigataareusedtotreaturinarydysfunction,infertility,chronicdiarrheaandtoregulatekidney function. Externaluse:Rosehipoilbringsaboutskinregenerationandwoundhealing.Itrepairsskinsubjectedtoexcessivesunlight andtheresultantphotoaging.Thelinoleicandlinolenicacidsinrosehiphavealsobeenshowntoreducepigmentationof theskinandwhenusedregularlyhasbeenshowntoreducefinelinesandwrinkles. Aromatherapy:Althoughrosehipoilisnotstrictlyanessentialorvolatileoil,itisnormallyclassifiedasanessentialoil,as itisfarmorethanjustavegetablecarrieroilintowhichessentialoilsarenormallymixed.Rosehipoildoesnotneedtobe dilutedbeforeuseontheskinasmostessentialoilsneedtobe,andhassomeverypositiveeffectsonthehealthofthe skin.Ithassomegreatrejuvenatingpropertiesandishelpfulwithfightingsundamagetotheskin.ItishighinGLA, helpingtoreducethesignsofageing,especiallythefinelinesaroundtheeyes(crows'feet)andlinesaroundthemouth, fightingthedryingeffectsofthesunandclimate,aswellasassistingwithattenuatingbothaccidentalandsurgicalscars.It helpstheskinhealandregenerate,preventingtheformationofuglykeloidscartissue(thickeningoftheskinwhen formingscartissue)andishelpfulinhealingburns,scarsandstretchmarks. Tobrewrosehiptea,whichbythewayistrulydelicious,roughlychopupentirerosehips.Coverwithdistilledor purifiedwaterandboilfor30minutes(longerifdesired).Strainthroughafinestrainerorcheesecloth.

Whetherinhaledandenjoyedfromafreshlycutbouquetofsumptuousbloomsorsplashedonasrosewater afterashowerorbath,Rosesaresimplyapleasuretobeenjoyedbyall!

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