Native Plants

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Bettinger, Edith

Rosa arkansana var. suffulta

Rosa arkansana Porter var. suffulta (Greene) Cockerell

Prairie Rose, Sunshine Rose

Rosaceae (Rose Family)

Synonym(s): Rosa alcea, Rosa conjuncta, Rosa pratincola, Rosa suffulta, Rosa suffulta var. relicta

USDA Symbol: ROARS

USDA Native Status: L48 (N), CAN (N)

One of the most common and variable wild roses. Usually a 6-36 in., erect, spreading prickly branched shrub with pinnately compound leaves turning maroon in fall. Large, pink, five-petaled flowers are followed by red hips.

This wild rose is often less woody than other Rosa species, dying back annually to near the ground.

From the Image Gallery

1 photo(s) available in the Image Gallery

Plant Characteristics

Duration: Perennial
Habit: Shrub
Leaf Retention: Deciduous
Fruit Type: Achene
Size Notes: Up to about 5 feet tall, often shorter.
Fruit: Hip (mature floral tube) surrounding achenes.

Bloom Information

Bloom Color: Pink
Bloom Time: May , Jun , Jul

Distribution

USA: AR , CO , DC , IA , IL , IN , KS , MA , MI , MN , MO , MT , ND , NE , NM , NY , OH , OK , SD , TX , WI , WY
Native Distribution: IN to Alt., s. to AR, TX & NM; also NY
Native Habitat: Prairies; bluffs; open woods; thickets; roadsides

Growing Conditions

Light Requirement: Part Shade
Soil Description: Variable.
Conditions Comments: Susceptible to fungal problems.

Value to Beneficial Insects

Special Value to Native Bees
Special Value to Bumble Bees
Provides Nesting Materials/Structure for Native Bees

This information was provided by the Pollinator Program at The Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation.

Propagation

Description: Propagated by stem cuttings or division of rootstock. Softwood cuttings should be taken with a heel and treated with hormone. Rose seeds should be taken from the hips as soon as ripe and planted in the open or stratified before planting.
Seed Collection: Hips can be collected as soon as they are ripe. Achenes can then be extracted by macerating the hips in water and recovering the seeds by flotation.
Seed Treatment: Cold-moist stratification is required to break the dormancy of most rose species.
Commercially Avail: yes

Bibliography

Bibref 946 - Gardening with Prairie Plants: How to Create Beautiful Native Landscapes (2002) Wasowski, Sally
Bibref 318 - Native Texas Plants: Landscaping Region by Region (2002) Wasowski, S. & A. Wasowski

Search More Titles in Bibliography

Web Reference

Webref 38 - Flora of North America (2019) Missouri Botanical Garden, St. Louis, MO & Harvard University Herbaria, Cambridge, MA.
Webref 23 - Southwest Environmental Information Network (2009) SEINet - Arizona Chapter

Additional resources

USDA: Find Rosa arkansana var. suffulta in USDA Plants
FNA: Find Rosa arkansana var. suffulta in the Flora of North America (if available)
Google: Search Google for Rosa arkansana var. suffulta

Metadata

Record Modified: 2023-02-24
Research By: TWC Staff

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