I'll try. A rose "hip" is the seed pod of a rose. When a rose is in bloom, if you look at the base of the bloom that's where the hip will form. As the bloom matures and the petals fall off, that base will swell as the seeds mature, and if you leave it on the plant, it will form a the hip. These are more prominent with certain classes of roses, and may be red or orange in color when mature. Many of the roses that are sold today are hybrids and the hip portion might dry up before it is fully formed. I hope this helps. I can't find any clear pictures at the moment.

Here is an article from the American Rose Society web site, The Rugged Rugosa that includes a photo of the hips of Rosa Rugosa. Some refer to the hip as the "fruit" of the rose.

My grandmother made jelly from rose hips.

See:

http://home.neo.rr.com/kuska/specieships.htm

Here is a link that might be useful: link for above

thanks for the info and thanks esp for the link henry -- we have wild roses around our wooded area and i'll be able to (hopefully) identify some with this rose hip graphic :)