Discolored and disfigured by the winter.

There are still withered rose hips around, left untouched by the local greenfinches and other seedeaters. Is it just me, or do the rose hips look a bit like some deep sea octopuses? Especially the first one as it looks like it has an "eye". Love the cool (😮‍💨) hairdo as well. The second one took a direct hit from a snowflake, shattering it into smaller crystals. Nice, I did not expect to capture the moment.

This particular rose is the beach rose – an invasive species here in Finland and apparently lots of other places around the world. There are concerted efforts to eradicate them, and it's no longer legal to sell them anywhere in Finland. I expect these roses to be replaced by some of our native rose species in the not-too-distant future.

#beachrose
#rosarugosa
#rosehip
#helsinki
#munkkivuori
#finland
#winter
#february

Beach roses, or rugosa roses, originally from East Asia, were planted along the coasts of the United States in the 1800s because they were resistant to salt spray. They are invasive and annoyingly hardy, even though beautiful.

#Photography #SeattleWashington #PemaquidMaine #beachrose