This Korean rose grows naturally on stony hillsides and at the edges of forest in Korea, northern China and the Russian Far East. It is a close relation to the popular variety known in Finland as the midsummer rose (R. pimpinellifolia ‘Plena’), and its beautiful single flowers and delicate foliage meet the tastes of those who go in for wild roses. The flower colour can vary from white to pale red depending on the individual and the provenance. In autumn the species produces decorative orange-red hips and the leaves take on beautiful autumn colour before falling. The stems are extremely prickly, so it makes good hedges.
The specimens at Mustila are from seed collected by the Swedish plant hunter Elisabeth Öberg’s expeditions to north-east China’s Changbai Mountains. So far the hardiness of the young shrubs has been excellent, as might be expected of provenances from such a cold mountain area.