Do Moss Roses Come Back Every Year?

Moss roses are a species of portulaca.

Moss rose is a common name for Portulaca grandiflora, a sprawling, semi-succulent plant native to parts of South America. The plant is an annual, meaning that it sprouts, blooms and sets seeds in the same year. At the end of the growing season the plant dies.

Characteristics

The sprawling plant grows about 6 inches tall and spreads up to 12 inches. The fleshy stems are reddish and the equally fleshy leaves are bright green. The flowers, borne on the tips of the stems, can be single or double and bloom in an array of bright colors.

Effectively Perennial

Unless they are deadheaded regularly, moss roses self-seed prolifically. This assures a large crop of seedlings for the following season, making the plant effectively (though not actually) perennial. Seeds that fall from window box specimens will sometimes germinate in sidewalk cracks below the boxes.

Considerations

Moss roses are among the many species with "rose" in their common names. However, they are not true roses, which are members of the rosaceae family. The single- and double-flowered forms bear some resemblance to true roses.

References

• Floridata: Portulaca Grandiflora
• "The Botanical Garden, V II"; Roger Phillips and Martyn Rix; 2002