materia medica
rose
Rosa canina, R. multiflora, R. rugosa
cool, dry, tonifying
Taste: sweet, aromatic, astringent, sour
Family: Rosaceae
Medicinal parts: flowers, hips (fruits), roots
Actions: astringent, refrigerant, vulnerary, antimicrobial, nervine, nutritive (hips),
exhilarant (petals)
Affinities: integumentary, nervous, and digestive systems
Notable constituents: plant acids (ascorbic, citric, malic), catechins, flavonoids,
polyphenols, quercetin, carotenoids, tocopherols, pectin, tannins
Medicinal uses:
 Rose petals are a vulnerary astringent, excellent for wound healing of the skin. A
drying remedy, rose is particularly effective at drying and healing wet or weeping
wounds when applied topically.
 Cooling, excellent for topical application to burns. Sunburn, chemical burns, friction
burns, and heat-induced burns can all heal faster when rose is applied. The cooling
action of rose relieves the painful, hot sensation on contact.
 An antimicrobial astringent, rose water and rose vinegar make an effective skin
toner, particularly for people with acne.
 Internally, rose is an astringent for diarrhea and intestinal wound healing,
appropriate for leaky gut conditions, gut inflammation, and ulcerations.
 Rose is a cooling remedy that calms auto-immune and inflammatory states
throughout the body.
 A cardiac tonic, rose cools inflammation in the vasculature, and helps to restore the
tone of lax tissue. (Try rose hips with hibiscus for this.)
 As a nervine, rose is protecting and comforting. Rose is helpful for nervous system
pain caused by inflammation.
In practice:
 This herb can be added to many formulas for stress-inducing and painful
complaints. Rose calms and brings back comfort, which is an important component
of healing.
 Rose is particularly nice for chronic and inflammatory disease that grinds down the
spirit. Rosa has a gentle psychological effect, for working with depression and
anxiety, as well as feelings of loneliness. Rose is excellent for times of emotional
vulnerability.
Cautions: Rose root is a very strong astringent, with affinity for the cardiovascular
system. Rose hips are high in vitamin C.
Friends: calendula, plantain, lavender, linden, hawthorn, hibiscus, citrus
CommonWealth Center for Holistic Herbalism
commonwealthherbs.com