Where the Farmland and Wild Meet ~ Foraging for Roses in the Hedgerow

I have returned to South America just in time for the unfolding of Spring. In the evenings it rains. In the mornings the birds make an orchestra of sound. And as mid-morning approaches I set out to harvest one of the most fragrant flowers that I find in the feral areas of this land;

🌹 Roses 🥀

The most vibrant of all the roses is one growing on the now abandoned main house. I gathered the petals and blossoms that can be reached from ground level and left the higher up ones to decorate the otherwise drab house.

These roses in particular tend to dry best when separated as individual petals. They have an almost fruity scent when dried and seem to develop and even stronger scent when enclosed in a glass jar for a few months.

With these red rose petals in my basket I moved onto the wilder places. At the back of the farm there is a hedgerow of white and pink roses. They are hard to get to without getting scratches all over my arms but, worth the end result as these pink blossoms dry so well and hold their fragrance for a year, sometimes more when dried properly.

The season has just begun and rainy mornings prevent me from collecting all that these rose bushes have to offer. I am okay with letting some of the roses stay and adorn this landscape that gives so much to us.

I do have something else to think about and that is what to do with the stock of rose buds and petals that I still have from last year. This is the first time I have had this problem as I previously sold dried herbs to my old place of work. The roses were by far and away the most popular of my herbal offerings. Selling dried herbs wasn't a huge money maker though and once I quit that job I didn't really feel like going back much. Now I am left with a few small jars and bags of the herbs which I am packaging for friends.

the Medicine of Roses ~

Personally I love to add roses to tea mixes where they add a fruity flavor and a bit of natural sweetness to a relaxing herbal blend. When consumed in tea roses are calming and also warming. They can help with menstrual issues as well as add a sense of well being to the drinker. More than a tea ingredient, however, roses are renowned as ingredient in skin care products such as the famous rose water which I will, hopefully, be making in just a few days with my bounty of fresh petals!