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THE SCRIVIA VALLEY ROSE
The rose has always been the symbol of beauty,
of life, of love. From time immemorial, it colors our
gardens and our homes, giving us extraordinary
emotions with its charming blooms. It’s strong, but
also soft; it’s tough, yet tender; it’s thorny, but at
the same time velvety: it’s is the queen of flowers,
perfect to decorate any room, but also precious for its
extraordinary officinal and cosmetic properties.
Besides its beauty and fragrance, this extraordinary
flower boasts important beneficial properties that
boosted its use in pharmacopoeia. For instance,
the ancient use of rose syrup as a mild laxative and
cleansing or of rose water to perfume and purify
places and hands. During the various plagues that
occurred over the centuries, it was recommended to
give rose extract in different forms to the sick; it was
also suggested to hang sheets soaked in vinegar and
rose water on the walls of the quarantine hospitals,
and to visitors to bring a bag soaked in rose water, for
protection against the “corrupted air”.
The cosmetic use of roses has a long tradition too:
since ancient times they have been used in scented
waters (like rose water), massage oils and creams, as
this flower is a true blessing for sensitive, dry and brittle
skin.
For the Tesori di Liguria line, Ardes used a precious
extract of Rosa Rugosa from the Scrivia valley.
In this pleasant valley located behind the city of
Genoa, stretching along the springs and the upper
course of the river Scrivia, the cultivation of the rose
is an ancient tradition which dates back to 1600. At
that time, Genoa was one of the most important and
prestigious ports the Mediterranean sea, in direct
contact with countries such as Morocco, Turkey and
Bulgaria. The first roses came precisely from those
areas, and quickly spread within the Scrivia valley (a
crossroads for the passage of goods from the port of
Genoa towards Northern Italy), where they found a
favorable microclimate and soil for their growth.
Roses weren’t considered ornamental only, but also,
and most of all, as food: they were primarily used
for the production of rose syrup, considered a cureall product, as well as a pleasant beverage to be
consumed fresh in summer and warm in winter.
Amongst the main varieties of rose grown in the
Scrivia valley, there was the Rosa Rugosa, an ancient
plant, spontaneous mutation of the Rosa Centifolia,
characterized by strongly marked veins on the
leaves. It can reach 60 centimeters of height and has
the characteristic of being formed by a perennial
woody shrub, sturdy and erect branches, covered by
thin thorns and leaves, mostly obovate and with a
serrated edge. The flowers have colors ranging from
pink to purple-red, and rarely white. The fruits are red,
globous, smooth rose hips with persistent sepals.
The Rosa Rugosa was in danger of extinction until a
few years ago, when in 2000 it was revalued thanks to
the association “Le rose della Valle Scrivia”, created
by a small group of farms within the valley with the
help of the Valli d’Antola Park and the Province of
Genoa in order to recover the old plants and start a
project to propagate and plant new crops.
This tenacious flower, besides being a valuable
ingredient of delicious syrups and jams, is a true ally
of beauty: rich in antioxidant, softening, soothing
and moisturizing, thanks to the content of flavonoids,
ascorbic acid (vitamin C), tannins, carotenoids.
The production takes place in environmentally pristine
areas, and the plants are grown in a completely
natural way, without the use of chemicals.(http://
rosevallescrivia.altervista.org/index.html) This is
possible thanks to the specific characteristics of this
type of rose, particularly resistant to disease and pest
attacks.
Petals are harvested from May to early June, when
the corolla is wide open, and are transformed
into a glyceric extract that maintains the biochemical balance of the plant, while preserving the
effectiveness of the active ingredients it contains.