Rosa persica

Description

Rosa persica (Syn. Hulthemia persica) is an anomalous species of rose that at one time was placed in a separate genus Hulthemia. It is native to deserts and steppes from Iran and Afghanistan in the south, through Central Asia, to western Siberia in the north. Its distinctive characteristics include a simple leaf without stipules (most rose leaves are pinnate with 3 to 7 leaflets, and have stipules), and a distinctive flower with a darker coloured central zone. In its natural habitat it is a deep-rooted weed that suckers – growing in Iranian fields for example, where it is collected for fuel once the grain crop has been harvested – but it is difficult to grow in gardens and rarely cultivated. Rosa berberifolia is sometimes considered to be variety of this species, as R. persica var. berberifolia.