The Delicate and Powerful Rose

Are Roses herbs?  You may not think so, but Roses are edible, medicinal, fragrant bouquets, used for cosmetics and easy to grow.  The Rose, Rosa spp. is not only a gorgeous and fragrant flower, but it is also used to make cosmetics, cookies, ice cream and lemonade, and as a tincture, it is useful to alleviate depression and heighten one’s mood.

I have 18 antique roses in my garden and I know all of them by name, their color, when they bloom and if they produce rose hips. Rose hips are a high natural source of Vitamin C and they are quite delicious, particularly when combined with Lemon balm, Chamomile or used in a Respiratory Tea for cedar fever or allergies. You can drink a tea made from the hips or the hips can be made into syrup.

Awhile back I made a Vitamin C – Rose hip cookie using dried rose hips, powdered vitamin C, rosewater, rose petals and buttery cookie dough. They came out healthy and delicious and won a prize at The Crossings Rose Bowl party.  The excellent chefs at The Crossings judged this contest, so I am very honored to have my cookies become an AWARD-WINNING dessert.

I use fresh rose petals in my Rosewater in my Perfect Cream and Queen of Hungary’s Water, and I frequently use dry rose blossoms in herbal steams and my Miracle Grains (a facial cleanser).

Rose petals are velvety soft and high in mucilage.  Rose petals are often used in cosmetics, for the face and body, as they are nourishing and moisturizing for the skin. Fresh rose petals can be made in to a tasty tea and used as an astringent to help alleviate heavy bleeding.  In Belize, the petals of red roses are frequently used during childbirth to control any hemorrhaging (Herbal Remedies of the Rainforest by Rosita Arvigo). Roses are also “cooling” for fevers, and are used as an astringent for infantile or childhood diarrhea.

With the abundance of delightful rose petals in my garden last spring, I made a delicious fresh Rose Tincture, which is available for purchase. Used daily it helps to elevate your mood, keep a smile on your face and just help you feel good.  Look at a blooming rose anytime and tell me how you feel.

Roses speak the language of love and are frequently given to those we cherish.  Roses signify romance and seduction.  Not only a symbol of love, friendship and passion, but growing roses and using the flowers, leaves and hips can be rewarding for use in cosmetics and medicine. In old-fashioned “tussie mussies”, red roses signify everlasting love, pink roses signify sweet affection and white roses signify the purity of romantic love. Cleopatra had her servants gather rose petals to scatter in her boudoir to entice the affections of her chosen one.  Legends have it the couple would stand knee deep within the deep fragrance of the blossoms, swooning from the erotic aroma.

For fragrance, cut flowers, cosmetic preparations, yummy culinary additives and medicinal use: plant roses, lots of them.  You’ll treasure them always.

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Purchase these ROSE products now: All are made from the fresh, fragrant roses in EZ Herbs garden.

2 oz. $26.00  Rose Tincture
4 oz. $15.95  Rosewater Limited Supply!
2 oz. $12.50 Miracle Grains
4 oz.  $16.95 Queen of Hungary Water
1 oz. $15.95  Perfect Cream