beautiful roses

The oldest rose fossils that have been found are in Colorado. They were alive 40 million years ago. Wild roses grow naturally in many parts of the northern hemisphere; from India and the Tigris-Euphrates River Valley to Egypt; and from Siberia and Europe to the Americas. In the Americas, they grow from the snows of Canada to the tropics of Mexico.

beautiful colors

Hybridization and other ‘meddling’ has added many beautiful colors and other traits, but has often created weaker plants. As an example, grafting one kind of rose onto a different rose root stock is a common practice, which often creates a rose that is more prone to pathogenic attack.

red roses

Rose petals have tannin, which is an astringent, and were used to control bleeding. Rose petals were also used as an infusion for diarrhea. Rose oil and rose water were used in China for stomach and colon problems. It would be easy to write a book about the many early uses of roses.

rose gardens

Roses are the most revered flower in the world today and have probably always been the most revered flower. Ancient civilizations revered them for their beauty, aromatic oil, and medicinal powers.