We are all familiar with roses. They are beautiful flowers and they have many uses in the natural skincare world (like Scratch Mommy Founder Jess’s handcrafted and UhMaaaZing Pronounce Skincare Rose Water Spray). But did you know that there is more to roses than just their flowers? I’m talking about rosehips, and I am SO excited for you to learn about rosehip benefits and uses!
What are Rosehips?
Rosehips are the fruit of roses! I bet you thought rose bushes were just flowering bushes (I did!), but as it turns out they are a bit more like a fruit bush…think tomatoes or blueberries or something. In late summer to fall, after the rose flowers die away they leave behind these little fruits. These fruits aren’t really all that great for eating (they are a bit tart like crabapples), but rosehips are amazing for health benefits.
Rosehips are most popular for their high vitamin C levels. In fact, they are higher in vitamin C than even citrus fruits! However, it’s not just vitamin C that these babies are packed with, they also contain antioxidants, vitamin E, vitamin K, and minerals like calcium, magnesium, and zinc. Granted you aren’t going to get tons of calcium from rosehips, at least not enough to compare to milk, but it’s nice to know that when you have a cup of rosehip tea you are getting much more than just flavored water!
All these vitamins and nutrients make rosehips great at supporting the immune system, healing, and protection against diseases. All of this means I’m sure to stock up on these rose fruits come cold and flu season! Rosehips also make an amazing oil which is one of my favorite oils to use for my skin. Rosehip oil is an great anti-aging oil and helps reduce wrinkles, fine lines, and even scars!
How To Harvest Rosehips
After your roses bloom, allow them to die off naturally. You will be tempted to prune them back to make them more attractive, but resist! Your rosehips are on the way. When rosehips are bright red and soft they are ready to be harvested. You can harvest rosehips as early fall but if you can hold off until winter or after the first frost, which is really the best time. Rinse your rosehips well and they are ready to use.
Preserving Rosehips
You can use rosehips whole or cut but most people prefer to remove the seeds first. If you want to preserve your harvest of rosehips for later use simply cut off the blossom ends and stems and allow them to dry. You can allow them to air dry on a baking sheet for a few weeks or you can speed up the process and dry them in a food dehydrator until they are hard. Mountain Rose Herbs also offers certified organic dried rosehips.
Rosehip Uses
Anti-Aging Face Care
Rosehip oil is commonly called the anti-aging oil. Just on its own, it is a very effective wrinkle reducer, fine line eraser, and scar fader. However, if you want something with even more oomph, then you can make this DIY Face Serum for Aging Skin.
Hand Lotion
Rosehip oil is a “dry oil” so it soaks quickly into the skin. We like to add it to our Dandelion-Infused Hand Lotion for a great moisturizing lotion.
Chlorine Neutralizer
Going swimming and worried about chlorine in your hair? Use this DIY Vitamin C Spray to help neutralize the chlorine from your locks and skin.
Tea
You can add rosehips to almost any tea. There are many herbs you can use when it comes to pregnancy teas, but adding rosehips to this Herbal Pregnancy Tea goes a long way to help boost mama’s immunity & increase iron absorption. You could also add rosehips to your kids’ tea, like in this Kool-Aid Alternative Tea, to help with their immunity and iron absorption.
Immunity Booster
I’m guessing many of you use elderberry syrup to help stay healthy through cold and flu season, but the next time you make a batch try adding rosehips to it for an Elderberry Syrup Plus!
Comments 7
This is going to sound so rude, but have you personally harvested and used rose hips or are you just posting information that you have found somewhere else? I told you it was going to sound rude, but I am curious.
Author
Unfortunately, I currently do not have access to roses (at least not roses that have not been sprayed) so I have not harvested my rosehips yet. I did gather the harvesting info from others but it’s pretty straight forward and almost impossible to mess up. 🙂
I love roses, and it’s nice to know the benefits!. Thanks for sharing at Merry Monday!
I believe in the importance of using natural sources for optimum health and beauty so I have used rose hip tea and rose hip oil as part of a healthy diet and lifestyle. But there are more uses for rose hips that I was not aware of so I am delighted that you shared the amazing benefits and uses for rosehips at the Healthy Happy Green and Natural Party. Thank you so much for sharing your gems and for your support! I’m Pinning and sharing All the best, Deborah
Huh, you learn something new every day! I’ve heard of rosehips, but had no idea their benefits! We usually use elderberry syrup for our winter time ails, I’ll have to give these a try as an alternative, and that koolaid alternative looks like something my kiddos would drink right up! Thanks for sharing with us at the homestead blog hop, hope to see you again this week!
How do you prepare them for uses? Boil them , or cook ?
Author
Preparation will vary depending on HOW you are going to use them. For teas and such you would steep the dried rose hips like you would any tea.