The tradition of picking the crop has also faded as entire families have fled the fighting between regime forces and rebel groups.
Its fame is such that the damask rose features in Shakespeare, but for Syrian farmers growing the flower that produces the heady-scented oil used to flavour Turkish delight, tragedy may await.
In and around Damascus and its eponymous province, the rose used to adorn gardens, balconies and roadsides, a symbol for residents of Syria's capital- It features in Western literature and poetry, notably that of William Shakespeare who died 400 years ago last month.
- Experts swear by its therapeutic properties in fighting infection and as a relaxant, and rose water is used across the Middle East both as a refreshing drink, in Oriental sweets such as Turkish delight, to scent mosques and even to bestow luck at weddings.
- Exported to Europe for centuries since the time of the Crusades, this ancient rose is also cultivated in countries including France, Morocco, Iran and Turkey.
- Exported to Europe for centuries since the time of the Crusades, this ancient rose is also cultivated in countries including France, Morocco, Iran and Turkey.
- War prevented access to the rose fields for a time and forced the cancellation of the annual rose festival, depriving El-Mrah of its main source of income.
- The tradition of picking the crop has also faded as entire families have fled the fighting between regime forces and rebel groups.
- 'The damask rose is dying,' he says in the Nabek area village known for growing the 30-petalled flower, but where cultivated land has decreased by more than half.
- Farmer Jamal Abbas looks out over land in El-Mrah, some 60 kilometres (35 miles) northeast of the capital of a country ripped asunder by war for five years.
- One of the oldest flowers in history, a staple of perfumers and known for its therapeutic properties, the damask rose is withering in the city and surrounding fields that gave it its name.
Its fame is such that the damask rose features in Shakespeare, but for Syrian farmers growing the flower that produces the heady-scented oil used to flavour Turkish delight, tragedy may await.
The tradition of picking the crop has also faded as entire families have fled the fighting between regime forces and rebel groups.
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