Rosa carolina
No rose grows natively in Austin, so when I visited the Diamond Grove Prairie outside Joplin, Missouri, on June 4th I was glad to see some flowers of Rosa carolina, which is native there and in plenty of other states. The second photograph shows that the colors of these roses vary.
© 2016 Steven Schwartzman
Portraits of Wildflowers 
Nice series, Steven.
elmdriveimages
July 26, 2016 at 6:29 AM
Thanks, Dan. I found more roses in Illinois a couple of days later.
Steve Schwartzman
July 26, 2016 at 6:50 AM
This is what, in the UK, we would call a Dog Rose, or a wild rose. They vary in colour just like the ones pictured. Lovely images, Steven.
LensScaper
July 26, 2016 at 6:43 AM
These are definitely wild roses, as opposed to the familiar cultivated ones that originated in Eurasia. Following your “dog rose” lead, I found a photograph of Rosa canina and confirmed how similar that flower looks to Rosa carolina.
Steve Schwartzman
July 26, 2016 at 6:58 AM
Lovely photos, Steve; this one is on my list to try for the garden, as I continue to replace lost plants with native species.
composerinthegarden
July 26, 2016 at 2:46 PM
Replacing the lost with the native strikes me as a worthy goal, Lynn.
Steve Schwartzman
July 26, 2016 at 2:58 PM
Would a fading rose smell as sweet? We have a few wild roses here. The dreaded Rosa multiflora is one which is not at all liked…we have it invading our gardens and try to pull it up when possible. One I do like is the Swamp Rose-Rosa palustris which I photographed a while back. Should look again this year.
Steve Gingold
July 26, 2016 at 6:03 PM
This is the first I’ve heard of that problem you’re having in the east ern U.S. with this invader from eastern Asia: Wikipedia says this: “In eastern North America, Rosa multiflora is now generally considered an invasive species, though it was originally introduced from Asia as a soil conservation measure, as a natural hedge to border grazing land, and to attract wildlife.” One more example of too little thought given to the consequences of introducing an alien species.
I see that the native Rosa palustris makes it as far southwest as Arkansas.
Steve Schwartzman
July 26, 2016 at 7:32 PM
We struggle with multi-flora rose here as well. As you say, too little thought. The powers that be have also gifted us with buckthorn, for the same reasons, and crown vetch. Cutting, pulling, burning, spraying~it doesn’t matter. Nothing really stops these thugs. I’ve seen areas that were wrestled free, only to be completely over-run again within a few years. It is truly disheartening.
melissabluefineart
August 17, 2016 at 10:14 AM
The invasive plants in central Texas are different from the ones you mentioned from Illinois, but just as much of a problem.
Steve Schwartzman
August 17, 2016 at 10:35 AM
The list of new invasives here grows every year. Sometimes I think we should just let go and see what happens. If the goal is biodiversity, well, we’d have it. It would just be a different suite of plants. It is argued that our insects haven’t evolved to cope with the invading plants. True. However at the rate we are killing them, I’m not sure it matters! How is that for cynical?
melissabluefineart
August 17, 2016 at 10:42 AM
I think I can match you. About a decade ago, prompted by my four years of teaching as a certain school, I started telling people that I wished the Nobel committee would start offering a prize for cynicism because I’d be a shoo-in to win.
Steve Schwartzman
August 17, 2016 at 11:01 AM
[…] Rachel, who is the organization’s secretary, e-mailed me back to say that the plant is likely Rosa carolina and that the spiky red things are galls created by the spiny rose gall wasp, Diplolepis bicolor. […]
Strangeness | Portraits of Wildflowers
July 27, 2016 at 4:35 AM
I just recently learned that a rose I thought perfectly lovely — the Macartney rose — also is an invasive and a terrible problem. There is, however, the Rosa foliolosa, or white prairie rose, a nice Texas native which varies in color just as this Rosa carolina does. I suspect that it — and our other native roses — live well away from the coast.
shoreacres
July 27, 2016 at 6:39 AM
A glance at distribution maps shows you’re right: no native rose grows along the coast. The Rosa foliolosa is shown living primarily in the Dallas-Fort Worth area and surrounding counties.
Steve Schwartzman
July 27, 2016 at 8:27 AM
What exquisite close ups – just lovely!
Birder's Journey
July 27, 2016 at 7:59 PM
I’m glad you enjoy them. I use my close-up lens more than any other.
Steve Schwartzman
July 28, 2016 at 5:32 AM
They’re incredible.
Birder's Journey
July 28, 2016 at 6:56 AM
Since your visit I’ve learned more about our 3 species of native roses. Until now I thought they were virtually indistinguishable. Thanks to you I looked again, so that is another gift of your visit 🙂
melissabluefineart
August 17, 2016 at 10:16 AM
Happy gift. I’m always prompted to learn more about things, but there are way too many things to deal with adequately.
Steve Schwartzman
August 17, 2016 at 10:40 AM
So true. When I was out there yesterday studying plants in the panne, I came across a group of people hunched over a shrub. Turns out they were studying a rare katydid. They came all the way from Ohio! Wow.
melissabluefineart
August 17, 2016 at 10:43 AM
I hope their katydid study didn’t turn out to be a flash in the panne.
Steve Schwartzman
August 17, 2016 at 11:26 AM