Rocky Mountain Wild Flowers

Prickly Rose, the floral emblem of Alberta

Commonly called the Alberta rose because it is the floral emblem of the province of Alberta, Canada, the prickly rose is found in abundance throughout the mountains and forests of Alberta. Sweet scented with an open face, a number of flowers cluster on the same stem. The short stems have many prickles and alternate leaves in 3 to 7 leaflets. The reddish-pink flower has five sepals and five petals surrounding yellow-gold stamens.
A pear-shaped fruit called a rose hip will remain on the stem throughout the winter, providing food for birds and mammals. Rose hips are high in Vitamins A and C and can be made into jam, jelly, syrup, marmalade and juice. Aboriginals used the leaves in tea and salads, smoked the inner bark, made beads form the rose hips, and fashioned perfumed sachets from the petals.
Photos by John Fisher

Return to Mountain Flower Homepage.
Email your comments and questions to John at mountainflower@geocities.com.
Information source George Scotter and Halle Flygare. Wildflowers of the Canadian Rockies. Edmonton: Hurtig, 1986.
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March 30, 2002

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