Commercially available

• Ground Rose
• Rosa granulata Greene Synonym

6 favorite votes.  

Medium pink Species.

Species / Wild.  

Deep pink.  5 petals.  Average diameter 1.25".  Small, single (4-8 petals), borne mostly solitary, in small clusters bloom form.  Once-blooming spring or summer.  

Short, armed with thorns / prickles, sends out runners.  Small foliage.  5 to 9 leaflets.  

Height: 6" to 2' (15 to 60cm).  

USDA zone 6b through 9b (default).  Drought resistant.  

Diploid

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The original botanical descriptions describe the prickles as spare or few, while the more current description describes them as many and straight. This is confusing.
R. granulata Greene, Leafl. Bot. Observ. Crit. 2:262 (1912)

California authority on Rosa spithamea, Barbara Ertter, describes it as "part of California's well known fire-following flora. Plants persist between fires not as seeds but as inconspicuous, rarely flowering members of the scrub...Apparently only after fire removes the overstory, and covers the ground with nutrient-rich ash, does Rosa spithamea flourish and put on a prominent display of abundant flowers." Dr. Ertter goes on to note: "The short habit and colorful fall foliage of the Coast Ground Rose suggest significant horticultural potential, but the possible fire requirement might be at odds with the average gardening regime." From Native California Roses (2001) Barbara Ertter.
See also Rosa sonomensis.