Scent as a small courtesy · Handmade in rural Zhejiang, China
Dried Rose Petals and Buds: How They Smell, Rose Tea, and Pingyin vs Mohong Roses
Flowers
Roses are shrubs of the genus Rosa, in the rose family. Dried rose is the bud or petal, picked before it opens fully and dried at low heat. It smells full and sweet. You can steep it as tea, bake with it, scatter it in a bath, or blend it into incense. This page covers the two we use: roses from Pingyin in Shandong, and Mohong roses from Yunnan.
| Also known as | Rose. In Chinese medicine, mei gui hua, from Rosa rugosa Thunb. |
| What it is | The dried bud or petal of a rose |
| Scent | Sweet, full, rich rose |
| Grown in | Pingyin rose: Pingyin, Shandong, China. Mohong rose: Yunnan, China (a French-bred variety) |
| Common forms | Dried buds, dried petals, freeze-dried petals, rose oil, rose water |
| Protection | A cultivated crop, not listed under CITES. Wild Rosa rugosa is listed as endangered in its native China |
What are dried rose petals and buds?
They are the same flower in different forms. Buds are picked before they open. Pharmacopoeia-style sources say “harvested before flowering, dried at low temperature,” mainly in Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Shandong and Anhui. Petals are pulled from open flowers and then sun-dried or freeze-dried.
Wild Rosa rugosa is a suckering shrub, 1 to 1.5 m tall, with wrinkled leaves (rugosa means wrinkled) and five-petaled flowers 6 to 9 cm across, from deep pink to white. It is native to northeastern China, Japan, Korea and southeastern Siberia, and often grows on beach dunes. It reached England only in 1796. Cultivated roses have more petals, and their color and shape differ from the wild plant.
What do dried roses smell like?
Sweet, full, rich rose. Most of the research on rose oil is on damask rose. Its oil is 20 to 34% citronellol and 15 to 22% geraniol, with some nerol and phenylethyl alcohol. Rose oxide (under 1%) and beta-damascenone are present in tiny amounts but are treated as marks of quality. These figures are for damask rose. They are not lab results for our two roses.
How do you use dried roses?
| Way | How | Good for |
|---|---|---|
| As tea | A small pinch of dried buds or petals in hot water, alone or with black or green tea | A warm drink |
| In sweets and jams | Rose jam, rose cakes and rose sugar are traditional in China. Yunnan’s flower cakes use edible roses | The kitchen |
| In a bath or sachet | Scatter dried petals in bathwater, or tuck them in a cloth bag | The home |
| In blends | Ground fine and added to incense beads, sachets and pellets, they lay a floral layer over woods and resins | Carried with you, the home |
Buy roses labeled edible if you plan to eat them. Florist roses may have been sprayed with pesticide and are not meant for the mouth.
How are dried roses different from other materials?
Kinds: Pingyin rose vs Mohong rose
| Pingyin rose | Mohong rose | |
|---|---|---|
| Color | Purplish red, double-petaled | Deep crimson, petals full and dense |
| Grown in | Pingyin, Shandong, known as China’s “rose town” | Yunnan (originally a French-bred variety) |
| Scent | Clean, sweet and full-bodied | Rich, full rose |
| Form we use | Buds | Petals and buds |
Pingyin County in Jinan has a town called Meigui, “rose town.” The county government says roses have been grown there for over 1,300 years, on about 4,000 hectares, with more than 40 processing companies. These figures come from local government and press reports, not an independent survey. Press reports say April and May are the busiest picking months, and that corollas picked between 3 and 6 am are the best. Rose tea is mostly made from the corolla.
Yunnan’s edible rose industry is large too. In 2020 Yunnan had about 6,400 hectares of edible roses. Places like Anning make rose fillings, freeze-dried flowers, flower cakes and drinks from them, more than 30 products in all.
Often confused: dried roses, damask rose and rosehips
| Name | What it is |
|---|---|
| Dried rose petals, rose buds | The flower itself. This is what this page is about |
| Damask rose (Rosa damascena) | A cultivated hybrid and the main source of rose oil. Bulgaria, Turkey and Saudi Arabia together hold over 70% of the market. Not the rose we use |
| Rosehip | The fruit that forms after the flower fades. It is tart and mostly steeped as rosehip tea. A different thing |
Where do roses come from?
Damask rose is a cultivated hybrid not found in the wild. It probably began in the foothills of central Asia or in Iran, and rose oil distillation is thought to have started in ancient Iran. Rose oil is expensive because the flowers are picked by hand before sunrise, distilled the same day, and hold little oil: about 3,000 parts of petals make 1 part of oil. The Rose Valley near Kazanlak in Bulgaria and Kannauj in India, where rose attar is made, are among the best-known producers today.
Rose water is the distilled water left over. It is much cheaper and is used in food flavoring and skin care.
What are the benefits of roses?
In traditional Chinese medicine, rose flower is sweet and slightly bitter, warm in nature, and associated with the liver and spleen. It is said to move qi, ease emotional stagnation, harmonize the blood and relieve pain. Most of the human research on roses is on smelling rose oil, not drinking dried-flower tea. We found no reliable human study of tea made from dried rose petals.
| Claim | Evidence | What was found |
|---|---|---|
| Moves qi, eases stagnation, relieves pain | Traditional use | The traditional Chinese medicine view, for the dried buds of Rosa rugosa |
| Eases pre-surgery anxiety (inhaled) | Human study (small) | Turkey, 2019: 99 people having nose surgery were split into no treatment, a sham, or 15 minutes of damask rose oil before surgery. The rose oil group had lower anxiety scores |
| Eases pre-surgery anxiety (inhaled) | Human study (small) | Iran, 2022: 38 people having kidney stone surgery. Those who smelled damask rose oil had lower anxiety |
These studies used rose oil, had small samples, and came from a few research groups. They do not show that tea or the rose in an incense blend does the same.
Roses in history and culture
Eating roses in China
Rose flowers are traditionally made into rose jam and sweets in China. In Japan and China they are also used in dried-flower pot-pourri.
Are roses safe?
As food and tea, edible-grade dried roses are generally considered safe, and we found no authoritative statement to the contrary. A few things to keep in mind:
- Source. Buy only roses labeled edible and free of pesticide.
- Ask a doctor before using it as medicine, especially if you are pregnant, breastfeeding or taking medication.
Rose at ZendoDream
Good rose smells full, whatever form it is in. Mohong rose smells stronger than Pingyin rose, and its dried flowers are a deep purple-red. Mohong is dark and also quite astringent, so it mostly goes into tea and rose jam. The flower cakes of Yunnan use Dianhong rose instead.
If you see rose incense beads in a very bright color, be careful. They may be dyed with chemical pigments. The color of our beads comes from rose and roselle themselves.
In the pellets of Singular Rose · Heated, Mohong and Pingyin roses together make up 42.9% and carry the whole scent. The pellets are kneaded with honey and rolled by hand, then heated at 150°C / 300°F, never burned, so there is no smoke and no ash.
Pieces made with rose
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Singular Rose · Carried
$58.00 -
Singular Rose · Heated
$68.00 -
Singular Rose · Worn
Price range: $88.00 through $98.00Select options This product has multiple variants. The options may be chosen on the product page -
Osmanthus Moon · Heated
$68.00
FAQ
What are dried rose petals used for?
Tea, rose jam and sweets, baths, and dried-flower sachets. They can also be ground into powder for incense beads and sachets.
Can you eat rose petals?
Yes, but buy petals labeled edible. Florist roses may have been sprayed with pesticide and are not meant for the mouth.
What do dried rose petals smell like?
Sweet, full, rich rose. In rose oil, the main scent molecules are citronellol and geraniol. Those figures are for damask rose, not lab results for our two roses.
How do you make rose tea?
Steep a small pinch of dried buds or petals in hot water. Drink it alone or with black or green tea.
What is the difference between Pingyin and Mohong roses?
Pingyin rose is a purplish-red double-petaled flower, clean, sweet and full-bodied. Mohong rose is a deep crimson French-bred variety grown in Yunnan, with a rich, full scent.
Are dried roses and rosehips the same?
No. Rosehip is the tart fruit that forms after the flower fades, steeped as rosehip tea. Dried rose is the flower itself.
What are the benefits of rose tea?
Traditional Chinese medicine says rose flower moves qi, eases emotional stagnation and relieves pain. Most modern human studies are on smelling rose oil, and we found no reliable study of dried-flower tea.
Sources
- Rosa rugosa, Wikipedia
- Rose oil, Wikipedia
- Mei Gui Hua (rose flower), Huachiew TCM reference
- Pingyin’s rose industry blooms on favorable policies, China Daily
- Edible roses are grown in the Chinese city of Anning, FreshPlaza
- Dağlı et al., 2019, European Journal of Integrative Medicine, rose oil aromatherapy and preoperative anxiety in rhinoplasty
- Rose aromatherapy and anxiety in percutaneous nephrolithotomy, 2022, Nephro-Urology Monthly
This page is for general education. Health claims from traditional use and studies are not medical advice.