BOTANICAL AND ECOLOGICAL CHARACTERISTICS
SPECIES: Rosa woodsii | Wood's Rose 



GENERAL BOTANICAL CHARACTERISTICS : 
Wood's rose is a native, cool-season, fast-growing, long-lived perennial
bushy shrub [1,24,39,41].  It attains a height of 1.5 to 6 feet (0.5-1.8
m).  The stems have prickles which are straight or slightly curved and
0.2 to 0.3 inch (0.06-0.09 m) long [44].  The leaves are from 0.8 to 2.4
inches (2-6 cm) long [39,41].  Wood's rose has rhizomes and shallow,
fibrous roots that branch frequently [26].


RAUNKIAER LIFE FORM : 
   Phanerophyte
   Chamaephyte
   Geophyte


REGENERATION PROCESSES : 
Sexual reproduction:  Rosa spp. generally first flower and produce seed
when they are 2 to 5 years old.  Good crops are usually produced every 2
years.  Seeds of Wood's rose are injested with the fruit and dispersed
in the droppings of birds and mammals [21].  The seeds have a seed coat
dormancy and require warm or cold stratification.  Seed viability ranged
from 44 to 64 percent for seed collected in northern Alberta [24].  The
seeds remain viable for 2 to 5 years [45].  Seeds will germinate within
30 to 40 days [24,45].

Vegetative reproduction:  Wood's rose spreads vegetatively through
underground rhizomes, sprouting from the root crown, and layering
[24,50].


SITE CHARACTERISTICS : 
Wood's rose occurs on bluffs, dry grassy slopes, and on sandhills
throughout the prairies.  It is also found on riverbanks and clearings
in boreal and subalpine forests [6,24,39,42].  It is common on disturbed
sites throughout the eastern slopes of the Rocky mountains and is
especially prevalent along roadsides and south-facing cutbanks [24].
Wood's rose is found throughout the Great Basin but prefers rather moist
sites along streams or in seepage areas along fences.  When conditions
are favorable, nearly impenetrable thickets of Wood's rose are formed
along some mountain streams [35].

Soils:  Wood's rose is adapted to a wide range of soil types and
textures.  Growth is generally best on moderately fertile, well-drained
clay loam, sandy loam, or sandy soils [11,21].  It is also adapted to a
broad range of moisture conditions but tends to favor moist,
well-drained soils that are present in riparian ecosystems [21].  Wood's
rose is tolerant of moderately acid to weakly basic soils [23].

Shade tolerance:  Wood's rose flourishes in moderate shade to full
sunlight and therefore grows well on all aspects [6].

Climate:  Wood's rose is seldom found where the average annual
precipitation is less than 12 inches (260 mm) [6].  It is variable in
hardiness and climatic tolerance.  It will grow in moderate climates as
well as alpine environments, which suggests that some plants can
tolerate a cold, snowy climate with a short growing season [13,21].

Elevational range:  The elevational range of Wood's rose in several
western states is as follows [11]:

           Utah:  3,500 to 7,500 feet (1,062-2,275 m)
           Colorado:  3,500 to 11,700 feet ((1,062-3,549 m)
           Wyoming:  4,000 to 8,300 feet (1,213-2,518 m)
           Montana:  3,500 to 6,600 feet (1,062-2,002 m)

Associated species:  Wood's rose is commonly found associated with the
following species:  western snowberry (Symphoricarpos occidentalis),
common chokecherry (Prunus virginiana), hawthorn (Crataegus spp.),
serviceberry (Amelanchier alnifolia), Kentucky bluegrass (Poa
pratensis), fowl bluegrass (P. palustris), quackgrass (Agropyron
repens), big sagebrush (Artemisia tridentata), western river alder
(Alnus incana), virginsbower (Clematis ligusticifolia), golden currant
(Ribes aureum), coyote willow (Salix exigua), cheatgrass (Bromus
tectorum), beardless wildrye (Elymus triticoides), sweet scented
bedstraw (Galium triflorum), quaking aspen (Populus tremuloides), and
Canada thistle (Cirsium arvense) [7,14,22,23,32].


SUCCESSIONAL STATUS : 
Wood's rose is an aggressive pioneer of abandoned fields, disturbed
sites, gullies, and land cuts and fills [23,26].  It is moderately shade
tolerant and therefore can persist as an understory species in mid-seral
to climax communities.  In northwestern Montana, Wood's-rose-dominated
community types represent a disturbance-induced seral stage of the
ponderosa pine/red-osier dogwood (Pinus ponderosa/Cornus stolenifera)
and Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii)/red-osier dogwood habitat types
[7].  In many cases Wood's rose occurs as a dominant or codominant
understory species within stands dominated by cottonwood (Populus spp.),
ponderosa pine, and Douglas-fir [23].  Additionally, in the Black Hills
of South Dakota, Wood's rose occurs as part of the dominant vegetation
in the subclimax chaparral which occurs as an intermediate zone along
the eastern foothills, between the mixed prairie and the montane forest
and eastward along the stream valleys [25].


SEASONAL DEVELOPMENT : 
Wood's rose generally flowers from late spring to midsummer.  However,
date of flowering varies considerably according to elevation and
exposure [21,35].  The rose hips ripen during late summer and fall [35].
Hips generally remain on the plant throughout the winter [35,50].

Related categories for Species: Rosa woodsii | Wood's Rose