Food : Tongva, Cahuilla, and Chumash ate the fruit (the hips) and brewed a tea from them. The blossoms themselves were soaked in water to make a cooling drink.

Medicinal: The “hip” tea was also used as an eyewash. The roots were boiled into a decoction for colds and the leaves and “hips” were used in an infusion for general pain.

The petals were crushed and pulverized to use as a “baby powder” to prevent rashes.

Construction: The long straight stems were used for the making of arrow shafts. The “hips” were strung together in long strands as necklaces.

Erect, prickly shrub.

Otsur blossoms May to August.

It can be found in moist places, canyons, near streams, below 6000 ft.; it is found in many plant communities; cismontane.

Kumitaraxam (Cahuilla) name: Ushal.