Rosae Centifoliae Petala. Pale Rose Petals.
Related entries: Hips - Red Rose Petals - Rose Water - Oil of Rose
Pale rose petals are obtained from the cabbage rose, Rosa centifolia, Linn. (N.O. Rosaceae), a shrub universally cultivated as a garden plant. The plant grows from 1 to 2 metres in height; it has prickly stems and imparipinnate leaves, consisting of two or three pairs of leaflets, closely attached to the common footstalk, which is rough, but without spines. The leaflets are broad, ovate, serrate, pointed, and hairy on the under surface. The petals are numerous, pale red or pink in colour, and fragrant. They should be collected when the flower is fully expanded.
Constituents.—Pale rose petals contain a small quantity of volatile oil and a trace of a bitter principle, to which slightly purgative properties have been attributed.
