Consider-the-Lilies Web Gallery
Rosa Multiflora
This is a "good idea" for erosion control that has turned out to be a problem for farmers in Virginia.
(Autumn Olive is another species imported for this purpose that can also be invasive. But because its positive attributes far outweigh its negatives, I've spent a lot of time keeping it within bounds. Click here to see why: Autumn Olive.)
To be fair, Rosa multiflora shrub fulfills the original purpose of its importation and planting in Virginia: it does prevent erosion and I'll even admit the flowers are pretty!
The problem arises, because, unlike other roses, this shrub is not content to grow in place; instead it rapidly propagates itself, starting daughter shrubs beyond the eroding bank or roadside it was planted to protect.
The next season, this invasive immigrant spreads by broadcasting thousands of seeds from each plant and quickly takes over a fence line or bank, crowding out native plants.
Each young bush bush grows rapidly, soon forming a 10-foot diameter mass that is composed of springy, impenetrable branches bearing inch-long thorns.
It
is known by its botanical name,
perhaps because it hasn't been around long enough to develop a common name—but see mine
to the right!
Speaking from painful experience, cutting back these branches can be an ordeal.
Wearing a heavy jacket and hat, plus safety goggles, and standing back wielding a telescoping pruner used for reaching tall tree branches, I still got my self ensnared: I'm convinced it reached out to get me!
I appreciate the beauty of its blooms and its utility in erosion control, but the price is just too high for Rosa multiflora!
Any thoughts, pro or con? Why not drop me an anonymous note at the Comments page?
OR
Go back to the Main Directory to consider more lilies of the field.