BOTANICAL AND ECOLOGICAL CHARACTERISTICS
SPECIES: Rosa nutkana | Nootka Rose 



GENERAL BOTANICAL CHARACTERISTICS : 
Nootka rose is a native, deciduous, perennial shrub 3 to 6 feet (0.9-1.8
m) tall with erect or trailing stems.  Nootka rose reaches its maximum
height within 10 years.  Stems and branches are prickly to unarmed.
Leaves are compound and have five to seven leaflets.  The fruits contain
several long, hairy achenes.  Roots are deep.  Nootka rose has rhizomes
[13,14,17].


RAUNKIAER LIFE FORM : 
   Phanerophyte
   Chamaephyte
   Geophyte


REGENERATION PROCESSES : 
Sexual:  Nootka rose attains sexual maturity at 2 to 5 years of age.
Good seed crops are produced about every other year.  Nootka rose is a
seedbanking species.  Seeds exhibit seedcoat dormancy and require a
combination of warm and cold stratification or mechanical disturbance
for germination.  Seeds are dispersed by birds and mammals [13,14].

Asexual:  Nootka rose sprouts from the root crown and rhizomes [13,14].


SITE CHARACTERISTICS : 
Nootka rose is commonly found in moderately dry to moist climates in
submontane to montane zones.  It occurs on nitrogen-rich, fresh to very
moist soils.  It frequently occurs in floodplains, open streambanks, and
meadows [24].  It is sporadic in open-canopy forests with fluctuating
groundwater tables.  It is occasionally found on brackish-water sites or
sites exposed to ocean spray [15].  Nootka rose grows best at pH ranges
of 5.6 to 7.0.  It thrives on moderately fertile, well-drained
clayey-loam, sandy-loam, or sandy soils [14].


SUCCESSIONAL STATUS : 
Nootka rose is tolerant of both sun and shade.  It shows increased
growth and fruit production with increasing light.  Nootka rose
increases in cover with canopy closure, but may produce less fruit [14].


SEASONAL DEVELOPMENT : 
Nootka rose flowers from May through July [8,19].  Fruits ripen in early
fall and remain on the plant through winter [13].

Related categories for Species: Rosa nutkana | Nootka Rose