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Portrait of Field rose

Nature · Shrubs

Field rose

Native · flowers Jun–Jul · woodland edges, rides and unkempt hedges

Rosa arvensis — Rosaceae

A weak-stemmed, trailing native rose of woodland edges and hedgerows, with cup-shaped white flowers in midsummer. It is told from the dog rose by its styles, which are fused into a slender column standing out of the flower, and by its sprawling, purple stems.

How to spot them

  • ▸Styles fused into a long column protruding from the centre of the flower like a little peg (the key character; free in dog rose)
  • ▸Always white, slightly scented, cup-shaped flowers, single or in small groups, later than dog rose
  • ▸Weak, trailing or scrambling purple-tinged stems that sprawl over the ground, or hang down if climbing
  • ▸Narrow-based, curved (not strongly hooked) prickles; hairless leaves with usually five leaflets
  • ▸Oval orange-red hips in autumn; a low shrub in shady places, commoner in the south

How to know it

White cup-shaped flowers with a central column formed by fused styles, on trailing purple stems

Field rose.

Its long, weak, purple stems trail along the ground of woodland rides rather than arching upward on strong hooked thorns

Field rose.

Styles joined into a column, not free, separate this trailing hedgerow climber from the commonest wild pink rose

Field rose versus dog rose (BSBI key).

Flowers always white and cup-shaped, appearing after the pink-flowered relatives, in June and July

Field rose.

Often over-recorded because it hybridises with the dog rose, this native rose has oval orange-red hips

Field rose (BSBI note).

Quick-fire facts

  • •Rosa arvensis, family Rosaceae; arvensis means 'of the field', though it prefers woodland edges and rides
  • •BSBI: styles are fused in a long column, exserted from the flower — the diagnostic character among British roses
  • •Growth form: weakly trailing; if climbing, stems hang downwards (BSBI key)
  • •RHS: single creamy-white, slightly fragrant flowers on long arching or scrambling purple stems in midsummer, followed by oval orange-red hips
  • •Native to Britain and Ireland; Least Concern on the GB Red List; stable since the 1960s
  • •Northern records may be introductions; often confused with the hybrid between field rose and dog rose (BSBI)
  • •Compare: dog rose has free styles and hooked prickles; sweet briar is scented and glandular; burnet rose is low, spiny and black-hipped
  • •Found from sea level to about 410 m; on well-drained soils, dunes and railway embankments as well as woodland edge

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Sources