Rosa × damascena
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
(unranked):	Angiosperms
(unranked):	Eudicots
(unranked):	Rosids
Order:	Rosales
Family:	Rosaceae
Genus:	Rosa
Species:	R. × damascena
Binomial name
Rosa × damascena Mill.

Rosa × damascena, more commonly known as the Damask rose (Arabic: الوردة الدمشقية‎), the Damascus rose, or sometimes as the Rose of Castile, is a rose hybrid, derived from Rosa gallica and Rosa moschata (Huxley 1992). Further DNA analysis has shown that a third species, Rosa fedtschenkoana, is associated with the Damask rose.^[1]

The flowers are renowned for their fine fragrance, and are commercially harvested for rose oil (either "rose otto" or "rose absolute") used in perfumery and to make rose water and "rose concrete". The flower petals are also sometimes used directly to flavor food or to make tea and are considered safe for human consumption.

Description[link]

The Damask rose is a deciduous shrub growing to 2.2 metres (7 ft 3 in) tall, the stems densely armed with stout, curved prickles and stiff bristles. The leaves are pinnate, with five (rarely seven) leaflets. The roses are a light to moderate pink to light red. The relatively small flowers grow in groups. The bush has an informal shape. It is considered an important type of Old Rose, and also important for its prominent place in the pedigree of many other types.

Varieties[link]

The hybrid is divided in two varieties:^[2]

• Summer Damasks (R. × damascena nothovar. damascena) have a short flowering season, only in the summer.
• Autumn Damasks (R. × damascena nothovar. semperflorens (Duhamel) Rowley) have a longer flowering season, extending into the autumn; they are otherwise not distinguishable from the summer damasks.

A still popular example of R. × damascena is the Ispahan rose. The hybrid Rosa × centifolia is derived in part from Rosa × damascena, as are the Bourbon, Portland and Hybrid Perpetual classes.

The cultivar known as Rosa gallica forma trigintipetala or Rosa damascena 'Trigintipetala' is considered to be a synonym of Rosa × damascena.^[3]

History of cultivation[link]

Rosa × damascena is a cultivated flower, no longer found growing wild, and the history of just where it came from is varied, but generally understood as coming from the Middle East.

The Crusader Robert de Brie is sometimes given credit for bringing the Damask rose from Syria to Europe sometime between 1254 and 1276. The name refers to Damascus, Syria a major city in the Middle Eastern region. Other stories say the Romans brought the rose to England, and a third account says that the physician of Henry VIII gave him a Damask rose, as a present, around 1540.^[4]

There is a history of fragrance production in Afghanistan (Kabul Province) from the Damask rose.^[5] An attempt has been made to restore this industry as an alternative for farmers who currently produce opium.^[5]

Cultivation[link]

Rosa × damascena is best cultivated in hedge rows to help protect the blooms from wind and to facilitate ease of picking. Gathering the flowers is quite labor intensive as it must be done by hand. There are about twenty to forty days per year when harvesting occurs, depending on the type of Rosa × damascena cultivated in the region. The roses are gathered by hand and brought to a central location for steam distillation. Photos showing production methods can be seen here.^[6]

The largest producers of rose oil from the different names all falling under the name Rosa × damascena are Bulgaria and Turkey. France and India also contribute significantly to the world market. Morocco, Tunisia and some other Persian and Middle Eastern countries have historically produced rose oil, but their modern contribution is minimal.

The town of Kazanlak Bulgaria was founded in 1420. It is assumed by most historians that the cultivation of the Kazanlak Rose began around that period. Rosa × damascena, known in this region as the Kazanlak Rose, were reportedly brought to the area by a Turkish judge who brought them from Tunisia and cultivated them in his own fragrant garden, and is now cultivated for commercial use in an area surrounding Kazanluk called the “Valley of Roses.” The distillate from these roses is sold as ‘Bulgarian Rose Oil”, and “Bulgarian Rose Otto”. Follow this link to read more about the yearly Rose Festival in Bulgaria in honor of the rose.^[7]

Turkish rose oil is sold as “Rose Oil”, “Turkish Rose Otto” and "Rosa Damascena Attar”, or “Ittar’ in similar languages. While there are still families who run their own small distilleries and produce what is known as “village oil”, the commercialization of Rose Oil as a high quality product is carefully regulated through a state-run cooperative in the Isparta region of Turkey. The Roses are still grown by the small family farms but the flowers are brought to one of many stills set up and regulated by the cooperative for distillation and quality control.

India has also developed an industry producing Rose Oil (both Rose Attar and Rose Absolutes) as well as Rose Concrete. Perhaps due to the low labor cost and the commitment of the Indian Government to international trade and high quality standards, these products from India today are cheaper than those from Bulgaria and Turkey.^{[citation needed]}

The city of Taif in Saudi Arabia is famous for the cultivation of this flower, which is called "Ward Taifi".^[8]

Culinary uses[link]

Damascus roses are used in cooking as a flavouring ingredient or spice. It appears as one of the ingredients in the Moroccan spice mixture known as ras el hanout. Rose water and powdered roses are used in Indian and Middle Eastern cooking. Rose water is often sprinkled on many meat dishes, while rose powder is added to sauces. The most popular use, however, is in the flavoring of desserts such as ice cream, jam, Turkish delights, rice pudding, yogurt and etc. Chicken with rose is a popular dish in Persian cuisine. Western cookery today does not make much use of roses or rose water. However, it was a popular ingredient in ancient times and continued to be popular well into the Renaissance. In the west, it was most commonly used in desserts. Many traditional desserts in Europe, however, still make use of roses, such as Marzipan or Turrón.

Damascus rose water[link]

For centuries, the Damascus rose (Rosa damascena) has been considered a symbol of beauty and love. The fragrance of the rose has been captured and preserved in the form of rose water by an ancient method that can be traced back to biblical times in the Middle East, and later to the Indian subcontinent. An Iranian doctor, Avicenna, is credited with the invention of the process for extracting rose water from rose petals in the early 11th century. ^[9]

See also[link]

• Miracle of the roses
• Our Lady of Guadalupe

References[link]

External links[link]

• Gernot Katzer's Spice Dictionary - Damask Rose
• Rosa harvesting in Meimand; Photos.

Look up rosa in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

The name Rosa, Latin and botanic name of the flowering shrub Rose, could refer to:

People[link]

• Rosa (given name)
• Rosa (surname)

Places[link]

• 223 Rosa, an asteroid
• Rosa, Alabama, USA
• Rosa, Germany, in Thuringia, Germany
• Roşia Nouă village, Petriş Commune, Arad County, Romania
• Rösa, a village and former municipality in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany
• Rosà a town in the province of Vicenza, Veneto, Italy

Entertainment[link]

• "Rosa", a song by Dimitris Mitropanos
• Rosa, the starting planet in the PS2 game Rogue Galaxy
• De Rosa (band), a band from Scotland
• Rosa Filmes, a Portuguese motion picture production and distribution company
• Rosa (1969 film), a Mexican film starring Ernesto Gómez Cruz
• Rosa (1986 film), a Hong Kong film released by Bo Ho Films
• Rosa (1992 film), a short film directed by Peter Greenaway
• Rosa – A Horse Drama, a 1993-94 opera by Louis Andriessen on a libretto by Peter Greenaway

Other uses[link]

• Rosa (barge), a hotel barge
• Mitsubishi Fuso Rosa, a bus built by Mitsubishi Fuso
• ROSA, acronym for RCA Open-Source Application
• ROSA, the Romanian Space Agency
• De Rosa (bicycles), a bicycle manufacturing company
• USS Rosa (SP-757), a United States Navy patrol boat in commission from 1917 to 1918
• Record of School Achievement (RoSA), an Australian education qualification

Technologies[link]

• ROSA - a Linux distribution
• ROSA, a surgical robot

See also[link]

• All pages with titles containing "Rosa"
• List of Rosa species
• Rosawa, a village in Rajasthan, India founded by the Rosa clan of Jat people
• Sub rosa, Latin idiom for "in confidence"

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