Confederate rose and Cherokee rose are distinct but different plants
By Walter Reeves, For the AJC Troy Warren for CNT #HomeGarden Q: Are cotton rose and Confederate rose two different plants? In my mind, Confederate rose is a thorny vine while cotton rose is an upright plant. Carla Griffin, email A: Cotton rose and Confederate rose are the same plant, Hibiscus mutabilis. The flowers are white when they open but change to pink and then red as they age. I think your thorny vine would be Cherokee rose, Rosa laevigata, the state flower of Georgia. Legend has it that this rose sprang up along the Trail of Tears when our first native Georgians were cruelly…