multiflora rose
(Rosa multiflora)
Overview
- Appearance
- Rosa multiflora is a multistemmed, thorny, perennial shrub that grows up to 15 ft. (4.6 m) tall. The stems are green to red arching canes which are round in cross section and have stiff, curved thorns.
- Foliage
- Leaves are pinnately compound with 7-9 leaflets. Leaflets are oblong, 1-1.5 in. (2.5-3.8 cm) long and have serrated edges. The fringed petioles of Rosa multiflora usually distinguish it from most other rose species.
- Flowers
- Small, white to pinkish, 5-petaled flowers occur abundantly in clusters on the plant in the spring.
- Fruit
- Fruit are small, red rose hips that remain on the plant throughout the winter. Birds and other wildlife eat the fruit and disperse the seeds.
- Ecological Threat
- Rosa multiflora forms impenetrable thickets in pastures, fields, and forest edges. It restricts human, livestock, and wildlife movement and displaces native vegetation. It tolerates a wide range of conditions allowing it to invade habitats across the United States. Rosa multiflora is native to Asia and was first introduced to North America in 1866 as rootstock for ornamental roses. During the mid 1900s it was widely planted as a “living fence” for livestock control.
Resources
- A Field Guide for the Identification of Invasive Plants in Southern Forests - USDA Forest Service
- Biological Control of Invasive Plants in the Eastern United States - USDA Forest Service
- Southeast Exotic Pest Plant Council Invasive Plant Manual - SE-EPPC
- Element Stewardship Abstract - The Nature Conservancy
- Weeds Gone Wild: Alien Plant Invaders of Natural Areas - Plant Conservation Alliance
- Fire Effects Information System - USDA Forest Service
- Weed of the Week - USDA Forest Service
- Plant Invaders of Mid-Atlantic Natural Areas - National Park Service and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
Selected Images
Maps
EDDMapS Distribution - This map is incomplete and is based only on current site and county level reports made by experts, herbaria, and literature. For more information, visit www.eddmaps.org
State List - This map identifies those states that list this species on their invasive species list or law. For more information, visit Invasive.org
Invasive Listing Sources
- Alabama Invasive Plant Council
- Alabama Noxious Weeds - Class C Noxious Weed
- City of Ann Arbor Michigan Parks and Recreation
- Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, 1994.
- Connecticut Invasive Plant List
- Connecticut Invasive Plant Working Group
- Connecticut Noxious Weeds
- Delaware Invasive Species Council
- Delaware Invasive Species Council Invasive Species List
- Georgia Exotic Pest Plant Council - Category 1
- Hoffman, R. & K. Kearns, Eds. 1997. Wisconsin manual of control recommendations for ecologically invasive plants. Wisconsin Dept. Natural Resources, Bureau of Endangered Resources. Madison, Wisconsin. 102pp.
- Illinois Exotic Weed Act
- Indiana Invasive Species Council - Invasive Plant List
- Invasive Plant Association of Wisconsin
- Invasive Plant Species of West Virginia
- Invasive Species of Concern in Georgia
- Iowa Forest Invasive Plants
- Iowa Noxious Weeds
- Jil M. Swearingen, Survey of invasive plants occurring on National Park Service lands, 2000-2007
- John Randall, The Nature Conservancy, Survey of TNC Preserves, 1995.
- Kentucky Exotic Pest Plant Council - Severe Threat
- Kentucky Noxious Weeds
- Maine Invasive Plants
- Maryland Cooperative Extension Service. 2003. Invasive Plant Control in Maryland. Home and Garden Information Center, Home and Garden Mimeo HG88. 4 pp.
- Maryland Department of Natural Resources Policy: Restriction on Planting Exotic Invasive Plants
- Maryland Invasive Species Council - Invasive Species of Concern in Maryland
- Massachusetts Invasive Plants Advisory Group List
- Massachusetts Noxious Weeds
- Massachusetts Prohibited Plant List
- Minnesota Noxious Weeds
- Missouri Noxious Weeds
- Missouri SRISP Species List
- National Park Service, Mid-Atlantic Exotic Plant Management Team Invasive Plant List
- Native Plant Society of Oregon, 2008
- New Hampshire Invasive Species Committee. 2005. Guide to Invasive Upland Plant Species in New Hampshire. New Hampshire Department of Agriculture, Markets and Food Plant Industry Division and New Hampshire Invasive Species Committee.
- New Hampshire Prohibited Invasive Species
- New Jersey Invasive Species Strike Team 2017 Invasive Species List
- New York Regulated and Prohibited Invasive Species - Prohibited
- Non-Native Invasive Plants of Arlington County, Virginia
- Non-Native Invasive Plants of the City of Alexandria, Virginia
- Nonnative Invasive Species in Southern Forest and Grassland Ecosystems
- Ohio Invasive Species Council
- Ontario’s Invading Species Awareness Program Tracked Species List
- Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources Invasive Plants
- Pennsylvania Noxious Weeds
- Pennsylvania Regulations for Controlled Plants and Noxious Weeds
- Plant Invaders of Mid-Atlantic Natural Areas
- Reichard, Sarah. 1994. Assessing the potential of invasiveness in woody plants introduced in North America. University of Washington Ph.D. dissertation.
- Rhode Island Natural History Survey
- South Carolina Exotic Pest Plant Council
- Tennessee Exotic Pest Plant Council
- Tennessee Noxious Weeds
- Treasure Coast Cooperative Invasive Species Mgmt. Area
- Virginia Invasive Plant Species List
- WeedUS - Database of Plants Invading Natural Areas in the United States
- West Virginia Department of Agriculture Regulations Governing the Distribution of Plant Materials
- West Virginia Invasive Species Strategic Plan and Volunteer Guidelines 2014
- West Virginia Native Plant Society, Flora West Virginia Project, and West Virginia Curatorial Database System, September 3, 1999
- West Virginia Noxious Weeds
- Wisconsin Noxious Weeds
- Wisconsin's Invasive species rule – NR 40
Taxonomic Rank
| Kingdom: Plantae |
| Phylum: Magnoliophyta |
| Class: Magnoliopsida |
| Subclass: Rosidae |
| Order: Rosales |
| Family: Rosaceae |
| Genus: Rosa |
| Subject: Rosa multiflora Thunb. |