The wild rose is perhaps the most quickly recognized of all the flowering shrubs. Having an almost ubiversal distribution in the United states, people remember its characteristc large flowers, compound leaves and particuliar fruits called rose hips. The showy flower, in addition to numerous stamens, has several pistils which are enclosed by the cup-like receptacle. After the petals fall, this entire structure becomes aggregate fruit of great importance to wildlife. The hips remain on the shrubs throughout the winter providing food for large birds and hoofed browsers. Early westerners made jelly from the ripe fruit and ate hips raw from the bush. The Indians also gathered the fruits for food and used the roots for treatments of ailments. {Plants of Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks by Richard J. Shaw pg 106}

Yellowstone Wildflowers link (this is an Adobe pdf file).

by John William Uhler

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