Wild Rose, or Nootka Rose (Rosaceae family)
Latin name: Rosa nutkana, - pronounced (Rose-uh noot-KAY-nuh)
Habitat
Wild Rose is a hardy perennial shrub in the Rosaceae family and is native to the Nootka Sound, which is a waterway on the west coast of Vancouver Island on the Nuu-Chah-Nulth traditional and ancestral territory. It grows prevalently throughout the Pacific Northwest and can flourish in many habitats and difficult growing conditions. You may find Wild Rose on wet or dry land, steep slopes, open forests, meadows, floodplains, shorelines, and stream banks.
Growth, Distribution and Identification
Throughout the world, there are over 100 species of rose and thousands of cultivated varieties. Nootka Rose is found throughout the Pacific Northwest from southern Alaska to the northern California coast, throughout Alberta and Montana and down south in New Mexico. Here in the Pacific Northwest, the 3 most common species of Wild Rose are, Rosa gymnocarpa, Rosa pisocarpa, and Rosa nutkana. Wild Rose flowers have 5 sweetly aromatic heart-shaped petals, ranging in color from light to bright pink. The leaves are alternate, having 5-7 jagged leaflets with rounded tips. True to their name, Wild Rose plants are considered somewhat aggressive when not managed and can become quite a large thicket! I must say, though, they could run rampant in my backyard any day!
Traditional uses of the plant
All parts of the plant offer a variety of healing benefits. The flowers and leaves are vulnerary (wound healing) and are soothing and cooling for the skin and eyes, easing pain and reducing inflammation. Wild Rose petals are a much beloved edible flower, calming and soothing anxiety and stress and imparting a gentle and sweet aroma. Rose petals are lovely in tea or infused in honey for a sweet spoonful of heart healing to soothe grief and sadness and bringing joy and activating heart energy. Rose hips form in the fall after the blooming season and are nutrient-rich and full of Vitamin A, C, and E. They are a wonderful springtime tonic for the kidneys and bladder, as they are mildly astringent and diuretic. Rose hips are gathered either in the late fall or early spring and can be boiled in tea or dried and have been eaten raw. The edible part of a rose hip is the outer shell. Great care must be taken to remove the mass of hard hairy seeds inside, as the fine hairs are irritating to the digestive tract and mouth. Rose hips make a wonderful addition to jellies and jams, offering nutritional benefits and flavour enhancement. Indigenous people have used the roots of the plant to make a tea for easing labour pains and sore throats, and the leaves and flowers for making an eye/face wash.
Distillation, Alchemy and Healing
The gifts from the distillation process are essential oil and hydrosol. Both have benefits that are unique in their application. Essential oil is separated from the water as a highly concentrated essence. The aromatic water is less concentrated as a more subtle product. Some plants contain more volatile essential oils than others. Lavender, for example, is rich with aromatic molecules and has a higher yield of essential oil, as opposed to Wild Rose, and most varieties of rose, which require large amounts of petals in order to yield precious little essential oil.
When distilling Wild Rose, I use ‘freshly harvested’ petals, (Earth), which are placed into my copper pot with spring water (Water) and slowly heated (Fire) so as not to damage the delicate organic constituents. As the volatile aromatic molecules of the petals begin to rise (Air) within the steam, so does my heartfelt joy at the miracle of transformation that happens within the copper pot! The three elemental principles of Alchemy, (Soul, Spirit, Body) are present in all things that exist, and are a fundamental aspect of distillation. As the plant material (Body) is gently heated, the lighter and more volatile constituents (Spirit) rise up within the steam, to be transformed to essence (Soul) in their cooling to a liquid state.
Distillation is Alchemy and I have come to understand Alchemy to be the purification, refinement and liberation of the soul essence of a plant, mineral, metal, or person. To quote Marlene Seven Bremner, my mentor, friend, and author of Hermetic Philosophy and Creative Alchemy, “It is the transformation of the heavy metals that lie within the psyche, into the pure light of divine consciousness, or gold.” I love this metaphor for the alchemical path, which employs the process of alchemy as a personal transformational journey, a creative unfolding, leading us towards Gnosis; the knowledge of spiritual mysteries and of the soul’s liberation.
Imagine what a joy to ultimately liberate our soul’s essence, by releasing what no longer serves our outmoded self, refining and purifying, to evolve into our highest healed state?
I am certain that Wild Rose Hydrosol can support us on a path towards Gnosis.
Wild Rose Petals – My Heart
Rose petals are truly a treasure, their soft velvety texture and sweet aroma fills my heart with gratitude and bliss every year in May. The gentle breeze lifts the sweet, fresh and light lemon aroma throughout the air. As I gather a petal here and there, my excitement grows in anticipation of my distillation of the petals, which is my favourite part of the plant to work with to create my Wild Rose Hydrosol (Aromatic Water) and my Wild Rose Oil Infusion.
Wild Rose Hydrosol is suitable for all skin types with many healing benefits and uses. It is delicate and gentle and is perfect as a facial mist, linen spray, compress, sitz bath as well as to make creams and for applying clay masks, and much more. It is hydrating, nourishing, cooling and soothing for redness and overheated skin. In my experience, as a hydrosol ages, the aroma improves. It usually takes a month after distillation for the aromatic molecules to find their place. The aroma of Wild Rose reminds me of honey and very slightly of light lemon, fresh, subtle, and sweet. I love misting my Wild Rose Hydrosol on my face in the morning and evening before using my cream moisturizer.
A Wild Rose Oil (Infusion) calls for dried wild rose petals. The petals are placed in a wide-mouthed mason jar and a vegetable based oil, such as jojoba or olive, is poured over top the petals, covering them completely. The jar is capped tightly and shaken daily, while the rose petals release their aromatic molecules into the oil, which sits for several weeks, perhaps in the sunshine, before straining off the plant material. This gently aromatic and sacred oil may be used in a number of ways, as a base for salves, as a massage/bath oil, and to be used in ceremony, to anoint chakra points on the body, as well as for offerings to pour for land and spirit. Essential oils may be added to increase the benefits, however the oil is divine on its own. Wild Rose oil is the base for my Wild Rose Salve and Wild Rose Elixir, which both contain rose essential oil (Rose otto) as well as rose quartz crystals! Something special I have done is to pour my Wild Rose Infusion at the base of the plants used the previous year. When I do this, I feel deeply connected to something ancient and powerful. Priestesses from Avalon would sprinkle sacred oils, water, and holy offerings to bless and give back to the Goddess, and I too wish to be in this same service to her and to the land.
Listening, Learning and Harvesting
An important aspect of harvesting (also known as wildcrafting) is to be in reciprocity with the land and people and to harvest with care and respect. As a settler on the unceded territory of the Squamish Nation and Coast Salish people, I am acutely aware of the importance of honouring the land, building relationships with the plants, (and people), and only harvesting what I need. Building relationship takes time. It is more about listening than anything. Spending time in nature in silence and simplicity, listening to the wind and taking in the aroma of the trees warmed by the sun. When seeking permission, trusting what you hear and see when communing with nature as well as respecting the answer you receive is essential. If you are ever in doubt whether you have permission, that is likely your answer. In addition, there are ethical ways to gather and harvest that will still allow bees to pollinate and rose hips to form. When I harvest, I gently remove a couple of petals, always leaving petals as well as the centre (pistil), to ensure bees can still enjoy that flower for a bit longer. This supports the life cycle of the plant. I love giving offerings of my hair to the plant, which like flowers, grows on me and can be plucked like a petal. I use my breath as a prayer of gratitude onto my hair offering, and gently wind it onto a branch. I love scattering dried flowers on the ground as an offering gift to Mother Earth, in gratitude for her abundance and for my many blessings.
On my path, I am seeking ways to learn more about my lineage and I am enjoying creating my own traditions that emerge from my heart. I am conscious that I need to be self-referencing rather than misappropriating Indigenous traditions. I am deeply grateful for the wisdoms that have been shared with me by Indigenous teachers; however, as I gain more awareness, I am working to honour and uphold truth and reconciliation, by respecting Indigenous history and not take and try to make mine, that which is theirs, and that includes their traditions and culture. My path of service is about right relationship with all my relations, plants, land, and people and that includes my relationship with Self. My intention is to walk gently on my earth walk, in humble healing, transforming wounds to wisdom with mindful presence and loving awareness of All That Is.