States select official symbols to honor their unique natural heritage and collective identity. Many states choose a flower to represent the local flora. Iowa, known for its vast prairies and rich agricultural land, has a particularly meaningful floral symbol.
Iowa’s Official State Flower
Iowa’s official state flower is the Wild Rose, commonly referred to as the Wild Prairie Rose. While the original legislative resolution did not specify a single botanical species, the flower most often cited is Rosa arkansana or its synonym, Rosa pratincola. This designation honors the various native wild roses found across the state’s plains and woodlands.
The Wild Rose is easily identified by its simple, yet striking, appearance, typically featuring five petals. The petals range in color from a pale pink to a deeper, showy rose-pink, surrounding a prominent center filled with many bright yellow stamens. It is a fragrant flower, exuding a pleasant, characteristic rose scent.
The Designation Process
The selection of the Wild Rose as Iowa’s floral emblem was formalized by the state legislature in 1897. The idea to adopt the flower was initially sparked by an unrelated state tribute in 1896. The Iowa legislature presented a silver service to the newly commissioned battleship USS Iowa, and the silver was decorated with an engraving of the wild rose.
Following this initial public display, a concurrent resolution to officially designate the wild rose as the state flower was introduced in the General Assembly. An initial vote on the resolution failed, but lawmakers ultimately sought the opinion of the Iowa Federation of Women’s Clubs, which was meeting in Dubuque at the time. The women’s organization approved the wild rose as the appropriate floral emblem. With this influential support, the General Assembly reconsidered the measure and adopted the Wild Rose on May 7, 1897.
Natural Habitat and Appearance
The Wild Rose is a perennial subshrub that is widely distributed across Iowa’s varied terrain. It thrives in a variety of open habitats, frequently found along roadsides, in ditches, and throughout the remnants of native prairies and open fields. The plant generally grows as a low, bushy shrub, often reaching heights of between one and three feet.
The plant’s foliage is composed of pinnately compound leaves that turn a maroon color in the autumn. Blooms typically appear in early summer, beginning around June and often continuing through late summer. After the blooming period, the flowers give way to the plant’s characteristic fruit, known as rose hips. These small, red, apple-shaped hips remain on the plant through the winter, providing a source of food for local wildlife.