Rosehips

(Rosa sp. – Family Rosaceae)

Rose hips

gratte-cul (French), Hagebutte (German), rozebottel (Dutch), nypon (Swedish), nype (Norwegian), ruusunkiulukka (Finnish), dzika róza (Polish), shipka (Bulgarian), divlja ruza/sipak (Serbo-Croat), mei gui guo (Chinese)

Rose hips are the seed pods of certain rose varieties after they have finished flowering.

They vary in colour from orange to deep red and have been eaten in Europe, Asia, and by the Native Americans for centuries.

The vase-like receptable of the fruit contains seeds covered with irritating hairs, which are often used by school children to make an itching powder to torment their friends. These hairy seeds must be removed before the hips can be eaten.

Although the hips can be eaten raw, the taste is not very pleasant. They can, instead, be made into a jelly.

Rose hips have long been known to contain a high amount of Vitamin C. A single rose hip typically contains twenty times more Vitamin C than an orange. Unlike most fruits, Rose hips have a property that prevents vitamin C from being lost when cooked, canned or dried.

During WWII, Great Britain was short of fruit providing enough Vitamin C for its people. Since the rose hip is very high in this vitamin and it was plentiful in the countryside, school children were sent out to collect them. They were then boiled down to make a syrup, which was issued as a dietary supplement to small children.

Species whose fruits are used both in Europe and Asia include the following:

R. ponifera