Rosa Canina

Macesul - Rosa canina (lit. Dog Rose) is a variable scrambling rose species native to Europe, northwest Africa and western Asia.
It is a deciduous shrub normally ranging in height from 1–5 m, though sometimes it can scramble higher into the crowns of taller trees. Its stems are covered with small, sharp, hooked prickles, which aid it in climbing. The leaves are pinnate, with 5-7 leaflets. The flowers are usually pale pink, but can vary between a deep pink and white. They are 4–6 cm diameter with five petals, and mature into an oval 1.5–2 cm red-orange fruit, or hip.
The plant is high in certain antioxidants. The fruit is noted for its high vitamin C level and is used to make syrup, tea and marmalade. It has been grown or encouraged in the wild for the production of vitamin C, from its fruit (often as rose-hip syrup), especially during conditions of scarcity or during wartime. The species has also been introduced to other temperate latitudes. During World War II in the United States Rosa canina was planted in victory gardens, and can still be found growing throughout the United States, including roadsides, and in wet, sandy areas up and down coastlines.
Forms of this plant are sometimes used as stocks for the grafting or budding of cultivated varieties. The wild plant is planted as a nurse or cover crop, or stabilising plant in land reclamation and specialised landscaping schemes.
Numerous cultivars have been named, though few are common in cultivation. The cultivar Rosa canina 'Assisiensis' is the only dog rose without prickles. The hips are used as a flavouring in the Slovenian soft drink Cockta.
The botanic name is derived from the common names 'dog rose' or similar in several European languages.
It is sometimes considered that the word 'dog' has a disparaging meaning in this context, indicating 'worthless' (by comparison with cultivated garden roses) (Vedel & Lange 1960). However it also known that it was used in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries to treat the bite of rabid dogs, hence the name "dog rose" may result from this. (It is also possible that the name derives from "dag," a shortening of "dagger," in reference to the long thorns of the plant.)
Other old folk names include rose briar (also spelt brier), briar rose, dogberry, sweet briar, wild briar, witches' briar, and briar hip.

In Romanian, its names is maces, pronounced 'machesh', which means "wild rose".
In Turkish, its name is kuşburnu, which translates as "bird nose."
In Swedish, its name is stenros, which translates to "stone rose."
In Norwegian, its name is steinnype, which translates to "stone hip."
In Danish, its name is hunderose, which translates as "dog rose."
In Azeri, its name is itburunu, which translates as "dog nose."
In Russian, its name is шиповник (translit: 'shipovnik'), which translates as "thorn bearer."
In Bulgarian, its name is шипка (translit: 'shipka').
In Mongolian, its name is нохойн хошуу, which translates as "dog nose."

In Hungarian, its name is vadrózsa, which translates as "wild rose."
Other names:
• Briar Rose
• Brier Bush
• Canina
• Dog Briar
• Dog Rose
• Hondsroos
• Hunds-Rose
• Rosa belgradensis Pancic synonym
• Rosa leucantha Loiseleur
• Rosa pseudoscabrata Bllocki ex R.Keller
• Rosa sarmentacea Woods synonym
• Rosa sphaerica Grenier synonym
• Rosa surculosa Woods
• White-flowered Rose

Also referenced as: Wolriechendes Dornröslein, Heckrosen, Hep tree, Rosier à fleurs blanches (syn. R. leucantha), Rosa sylvestris vulgaris flore odorato incarnato, Rosa sylvestris

Light pink to white. White to light pink to shell pink blooms. Mild fragrance. Small to medium, single (4-8 petals), borne mostly solitary, cluster-flowered bloom form. Once-blooming spring or summer.
Tall, arching, armed with thorns / prickles, upright. Medium, matte, medium green foliage. 5 to 7 leaflets.
Height of 120 to 500 cm.
UZone 6b through 9b. Can be used for understock. Vigorous. Disease susceptibility: very disease resistant.
Pentaploid
A wide-ranging species found throughout Europe, showing considerable variation in bloom and foliage color and texture. Blooms vary from white to pale pink to warm shell pink, foliage from shiny medium olive green to matte greyish green. Most distinctive are the hooked, falcate prickles that are green on new growth. Orange-red hips. Almost 400 forms and variants have been documented by taxonomists.