Rose Hips: Edible Treats After the Rose Fades (2024)

Rose hips come from various types of rose plants, remaining on the plant as edible fruit after the blooms fade. You might not see rose hips when growing roses because when growing the bushes for their flowers, most growers tend to prune the faded rose blossoms down to the next stem node to encourage more blooms.

Rose Hips: Edible Treats After the Rose Fades (1)

What Is a Rose Hip?

Rose hips are the fruit, or seed pods, of rose plants. They are usually red or orange but can be purple or black, and they typically ripen in the late summer or fall.

When spent flowers remain on the rose bush for winter, the bush produces small, 1/2-inch berry-sized, reddish seed balls left on the tips of the stems. They are ornamental, looking like small crabapples. Rose hips are edible, and many birds enjoy them.

Benefits and Uses of Rose Hips

Both rose hips and rose petals are edible. Roses are in the same family as apples and crab apples, which is why their fruits strongly resemble those plants. Rose hips have a bit of the tartness of crab apples and are a great source of vitamin C and antioxidants. Researchers suggest that rose hips have anti-inflammatory properties, too.

All roses should produce hips, though rugosa roses—native shrub rose species—are said to have the best-tasting hips. These hips are also generally the largest and most abundant.

Rose hips make great jellies, sauces, syrups, soups, seasoning, and even fruit leather. To get a sense of the taste of rose hips, start by brewing yourself a cup of rose hip tea.

Warning

Don't use rose hips from plants treated with a pesticide not labeled for use on edibles. If you're unsure, it's best to avoid using pesticides if you plan to consume the hips.

Rose Hips: Edible Treats After the Rose Fades (2)

What You'll Need

Equipment / Tools

Garden gloves
Knife or scissors
Colander

Materials

Fresh rose hips

Instructions

How to Harvest Rose Hips

Rose Hips: Edible Treats After the Rose Fades (3)

Time the Harvest and Hip Removal
The best time to harvest your rose hips is after the first light frost has nipped the leaves and before you experience a hard frost that freezes the hips. Light frost helps sweeten the flavor. Waiting until after a frost is also suitable for the plant since cutting the hips before frost could encourage the rose to send out new growth that will be killed back at the next frost.
The hips should appear firm and have good color. Typically, rose hips are red or orange at maturity. Leave shriveled or dried rose hips on the plants for the birds to enjoy; they won't be as tasty and may be too mushy to pick. To remove the hips:
- Don garden gloves to avoid being pricked by the thorns on the rose canes.
- Pluck fully ripe hips off of the rose canes or clip them off with a knife or scissors.
Clean the Hips
Trim off the stem and blossom end from the hip. Hold the hip securely and slice it in half. You can do all this trimming with scissors if the hips are too small to use a knife.
Remove the Seeds
You can use whole, fresh rose hips, but the seeds inside have an irritating, hairy covering, so removing the seeds before eating is best. Cut the hips in half and manually scoop out the seeds. You don't need to remove the seeds if you're making jelly.
Rinse and Process the Hips
Thoroughly rinse off the rose hips by running water over them in a colander. The hips can be used immediately or dried or frozen to be stored for future use.
Tip
For the most healthful impact, use rose hips when they are fresh. Drying rose hips causes them to lose most of their vitamin C.

Other Edible Uses for Rose Hips

Two common ways to use and preserve rose hips are for jelly and tea.

Rose Hip Jelly

Rose hips can be cooked to extract the juice for jams and jellies. The juice can be strained and used immediately or frozen for up to a year. When making jelly, rose hips are often mixed with other fruits, such as apples or cranberries.

Remove the blossom remnants and stems from the rose hips to extract the juice to make jelly.
Wash the hips in cool water.
Add the rose hips to a pan, cover with water, and simmer for 15 minutes.
Cool, then strain through a cheesecloth into a container. One pound of rose hips equals about 2 cups of juice.

Rose Hip Tea

To dry rose hips for tea, spread them out over baking trays and dry them in an oven or dehydrator set to 110 F until the hips are dry and brittle. When completely dry, store them in airtight jars.

You can also use fresh or dried rose hips for rose hip tea. You will need about twice as many rose hips if you use fresh ones.

For fresh rose hip tea, steep four to eight rose hips in a cup of boiling water for 10 to 15 minutes. Don't use aluminum pans or utensils that could discolor the hips; aluminum also affects vitamin C absorption from rose hips. Stainless steel is fine.

Tip

If you want to try out the flavor of rose hips but don't have any in your garden or aren't up to all the seeding and prep work involved, rose hip tea is widely available in many grocery stores.

FAQ

Can you eat rose hips from any rose?

The rose hips from all types of roses are edible.
Are rose hips safe to eat raw?

Rose hips are safe to eat raw; however, remove the itch-producing hairs surrounding the seed.
What do rose hips taste like?

Rose hips have a floral, slightly sweet, and tart flavor. They are similar in tartness to citrus,