Health Benefits of Rose Hips

Roses are a symbol of romance and passion, but did you know this plant can also be a source of nutrition?

Rose hips are the edible accessory fruit, aka pseudocarp, or “false fruit” of the rose plant.

This means that although they do contain seeds, the flesh contains both the mature ovary and other tissue from the floral structure. False fruits include apples, strawberries, and pineapples.

Botanically speaking, only the seeds found inside the rose hip are “true fruits.” Accessory fruits develop without fertilization of the ovary, where “true fruit,” such as mangoes and grapes develop after a mature ovary is fertilized.

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You may have heard of it in teas, but I’d like to dive a bit deeper to explore what this fruit has to offer from a culinary and nutritional standpoint.

Here’s what we’ll cover:

These fruits are typically small red or orange-colored bulbs that develop below the petals of the flower. Certain varieties may produce deeper purple or even black hips.

They ripen after the pollinated flowers finish blooming, most often in late summer or early fall.

The fruits can be eaten raw, if the seeds and the hairs surrounding them are removed. The hairs can be irritating to the mucous membrane in your mouth and digestive tract.

The flesh of the fruit has a mild, tangy, slightly floral flavor, and can also used to make jellies, jams, syrups, pie filling, teas, oils, and more.

With so many different edible forms, the nutritional properties can vary from product to product.

For example, pie filling made with fresh rose hips will likely retain more nutritional