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Rhodiola rosea

Common name:	Rose Root	Family:	Crassulaceae
Author:	L.	Botanical references:	17, 200
Synonyms:	Sedum rosea ((L.)Scop.), Sedum rhodiola (DC.)
Known Hazards:	None known
Range:	Arctic regions of Europe, Asia and N. America, including Britain, further south on mountains.
Habitat:	Crevices of mountain rocks and on sea cliffs[17].
Edibility Rating (1-5):	2	Medicinal Rating (1-5):	3

Other Possible Synonyms:	From various places across the web, may not be correct. See below.
	R. roanensis[B,P] Sedum rosea var. roanense[B,P] Sedum roseum[E]
Other Common Names:	From various places around the Web, may not be correct. See below.
	Radice Idea [E], Rose Root [E,H], Rosenwurz [E], Roseroot [L], Roseroot Stonecrop [P],
Epithets:	From a Dictionary of Botanical Epithets
	rosea = rose colored;
Systematics:	From a USDA Plants Database
	Order: Rosales. Stonecrop family
Other Range Info:	From the Ethnobotany Database
	Britain; Germany; Italy

Physical Characteristics

Perennial growing to 0.3m by 0.3m . It is hardy to zone 1 and is not frost tender. It is in flower from May to August, and the seeds ripen from July to August. The scented flowers are dioecious (individual flowers are either male or female, but only one sex is to be found on any one plant so both male and female plants must be grown if seed is required) and are pollinated by Bees and flies. The plant not is self-fertile. We rate it 2/5 for edibility and 3/5 for medicinal use.

The plant prefers light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils and requires well-drained soil. The plant prefers acid, neutral and basic (alkaline) soils. It cannot grow in the shade. It requires dry or moist soil and can tolerate drought. The plant can tolerate maritime exposure.

Habitats and Possible Locations

In Walls, In East Wall, Ground Cover.

Edible Uses

Leaves; Root; Stem.

The young succulent leaves and shoots are eaten raw or cooked like spinach[2, 52, 62, 85, 172, 183]. A slightly bitter taste, we find them unpleasant on their own though they can be used as a small part of a mixed salad[K]. They can be made into a sauerkraut[257].
Stems - cooked and eaten like asparagus[183].
Root - raw or cooked[106, 183, 257]. It was fermented before being eaten by the N. American Indians[172].

Medicinal Uses

Disclaimer

Adaptogen; Stomachic; TB.

Though little known as a medicinal plant, rose root has been used in traditional European medicine for over three thousand years, mainly as a tonic. Modern research has shown that it increases the body's resistance to any type of stress by regulating the body's hormonal response. Its use has been shown to have a protective effect upon the neurotransmitters such as serotonin and dopamine in the brain. It improves neurotransmitter activity by inhibiting their enzymatic destruction and preventing their decline caused by excessive stress hormone release. Rose root also enhances the transport of serotonin's precursors into the brain and studies have shown that use of this herb can increase brain serotonin by up to 30%[255].
The root is adaptogen. It has an enhancing effect upon physical endurance and sexual potency.
A decoction of the flowers has been used to treat stomach aches and intestinal discomfort[257]. The raw flowers have been eaten in the treatment of tuberculosis[257].

We have a more details factsheet on the history and medicinal use of this plant. Email webmaster@pfaf.org for details.

Other Uses

Essential; Ground cover.

Plants can be grown as a ground cover when planted about 30cm apart each way[208].
The dried root smells strongly of roses. They may be used to distil rose-water[245].

Cultivation details

Prefers a fertile well drained open loam in a sunny position[83, 200]. Tolerates fairly damp conditions but prefers a raised well-drained spot[83]. Established plants are drought resistant[190].
This species is extremely polymorphic[200].
Plants often self-sows when they are growing in a suitable position[83]. They can self-sow to the point of nuisance[K].
The dried root has a rose scent[1, 83].
Dioecious. Male and female plants must be grown if seed is required.

Propagation

Seed - surface sow in a sunny position in a greenhouse in spring. Do not let the compost dry out. The seed usually germinates in 2 - 4 weeks at 10°c. Prick out the seedlings into individual pots when they are large enough to handle, and grow them on in the greenhouse for their first winter. Plant out in early summer of the following year.
Division in August to October[200]. Very easy, larger divisions can be planted out direct into their permanent positions. We have found that it is better to pot up the smaller divisions and grow them on in light shade in a cold frame until they are well established before planting them out in late spring or early summer.
Cuttings taken in the growing season[200]. Basal shoots in early summer are easiest. Harvest the shoots with plenty of underground stem when they are about 8 - 10cm above the ground. Pot them up into individual pots and keep them in light shade in a cold frame or greenhouse until they are rooting well. Plant them out in the summer.

Scent

Root: Dried: The dried root has a rose scent[245].

Suppliers

For more details of plant suppliers please see our Suppliers Page which lists many more places to look.

Web References

[H] Details of Scandanavian and European Common names in Henriette's names database
[B] Data (Latin & Common names, other references) from the BONAP's Synonymized Checklist of the Vascular Flora of the United States, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands.
[G] Data (Common Names, Uses, Distribution) from the USDA/ARS NPGS's GRIN taxonomic database.
[P] Data. (uses, distribution, wetland) from the USDA'a Plants database.
[HP] Links, Photos, Suppliers from Hortiplex Plant Database

References for Sedum rosea (a possible synonym).

[H] Details of Scandanavian and European Common names in Henriette's names database
[E] Ethnobotany Data (common names, uses, countries) from the Ethnobotany Database.
[P] Data. (uses, distribution, wetland) from the USDA'a Plants database.

References for Sedum roseum (a possible synonym).

[E] Ethnobotany Data (common names, uses, countries) from the Ethnobotany Database.

References for rhodiola rosea (a possible synonym).

[HP] PhotoFrom Henriette's plant pictures
[HP] PhotoFrom Henriette's plant pictures
[HP] PhotoFrom Henriette's plant pictures

References for the family Crassulaceae.

[CHINA] Data Very detailed botanical/identification info. from the Flora of China.

See the PFAF Links Pages for other sources.

Also try Photos and info from the The Plants Database which has 14,000 images.

References

[K] Ken Fern
Notes from observations, tasting etc at Plants For A Future and on field trips.

[1] F. Chittendon. RHS Dictionary of Plants plus Supplement. 1956 Oxford University Press 1951
Comprehensive listing of species and how to grow them. Somewhat outdated, it has been replaces in 1992 by a new dictionary (see [200]).

[2] Hedrick. U. P. Sturtevant's Edible Plants of the World. Dover Publications 1972 ISBN 0-486-20459-6
Lots of entries, quite a lot of information in most entries and references.

[17] Clapham, Tootin and Warburg. Flora of the British Isles. Cambridge University Press 1962
A very comprehensive flora, the standard reference book but it has no pictures.

[52] Larkcom. J. Salads all the Year Round. Hamlyn 1980
A good and comprehensive guide to temperate salad plants, with full organic details of cultivation.

[62] Elias. T. and Dykeman. P. A Field Guide to N. American Edible Wild Plants. Van Nostrand Reinhold 1982 ISBN 0442222009
Very readable.

[83] Evans. R. L. Handbook of Cultivated Sedums. Science Reviews 1983
Deals with the genus Sedum. Fairly easy reading, it gives cultivation details and some notes on habitats.

[85] Harrington. H. D. Edible Native Plants of the Rocky Mountains. University of New Mexico Press 1967 ISBN 0-8623-0343-9
A superb book. Very readable, it gives the results of the authors experiments with native edible plants.

[106] Coon. N. The Dictionary of Useful Plants. Rodale Press 1975 ISBN 0-87857-090-x
Interesting reading but short on detail.

[172] Schofield. J. J. Discovering Wild Plants - Alaska, W. Canada and the Northwest.
A nice guide to some useful plants in that area.

[183] Facciola. S. Cornucopia - A Source Book of Edible Plants. Kampong Publications 1990 ISBN 0-9628087-0-9
Excellent. Contains a very wide range of conventional and unconventional food plants (including tropical) and where they can be obtained (mainly N. American nurseries but also research institutes and a lot of other nurseries from around the world.

[190] Chatto. B. The Dry Garden. Dent 1982 ISBN 0460045512
A good list of drought resistant plants with details on how to grow them.

[200] Huxley. A. The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. MacMillan Press 1992 ISBN 0-333-47494-5
Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.

[208] Thomas. G. S. Plants for Ground Cover J. M. Dent & Sons 1990 ISBN 0-460-12609-1
An excellent detailled book on the subject, very comprehensive.

[245] Genders. R. Scented Flora of the World. Robert Hale. London. 1994 ISBN 0-7090-5440-8
An excellent, comprehensive book on scented plants giving a few other plant uses and brief cultivation details. There are no illustrations.

[255] Solgar Vitamins Solgar New Product Information - Rhodiola Vegicaps. Solgar Vitamins, Tring, Herts. 1998
Information sheet from Solgar Vitamins, looking at the herbal use of Rhodiola rosea.

[257] Moerman. D. Native American Ethnobotany Timber Press. Oregon. 1998 ISBN 0-88192-453-9
Very comprehensive but terse guide to the native uses of plants. Excellent bibliography, fully referenced to each plant, giving a pathway to further information. Not for the casual reader.

Readers Comments

Rhodiola rosea

marie (service@naturalelixir.com) Fri Mar 14 10:38:02 2003

More complete List of Scientific Articles about Rhodiola rosea you can find on http://www.anti-aging-guide.com/Rhodiola_scient.html. Please, tell me, where I can find full info. about cultivation of this plant?

Link: http://www.anti-aging-guide.com/Rhodiola_scient.html

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Bibliography

Plant information taken from the Plants For A Future - Species Database. Copyright (c) 1997-2003.
WEB search engine by Rich Morris - Home Page- Contact Info
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