Rosa Canina – the dog rose got its’ name because the flower blooms when the dog star (Sirius) in the constellation of Canis Major and the sun are both in the sky together which used to be around July early August. The rose flowers a little earlier these days in June/July.

Another theory about the name comes from the story of a Roman soldier who was bitten by a mad dog and applied the roots of the Dog Rose as a poultice (Rosa Canina) to the wound to heal it; hence the Dog Rose was credited with being a cure for hydrophobia.

Another activity credited in the first instance to the Romans is the phrase sub-rosa which translated means’’ in confidence
. The Romans would fasten roses to the ceiling in the rooms where orgies, parties, secret meetings, etc were held. The roses on the ceiling meant that anything said or done in that room was in confidence and would remain so. The relic from those times is to be seen in the form of plaster ceiling roses that adorn large houses etc.

Another use for the dog rose is to use the hips when ripe to make rose hip syrup. It is still manufactured commercially today.