Demystifying Rose Prickles: Why They're Not Thorns
Guess what I just found out? Roses don’t have thorns—they actually have prickles.
It’s kind of like how strawberries aren’t berries and koalas aren’t bears. Isn’t that surprising? But hey, no need to be the know-it-all at the dinner party who corrects everyone, right?
So, why don’t roses have thorns, and what exactly is a prickle? Turns out, thorns are modified stems—like stems that have evolved into hardened spikes to fend off herbivores.
On the other hand, spines are actually modified leaves or stipules, which is why they're found on cacti. Prickles, though, are different; they're these little outgrowths from the plant’s outer layer of cells, kind of like tiny hairs or trichomes.
Imagine my surprise when I learned that those sharp things on roses are actually prickles, not thorns! Prickles come in all sorts of shapes and colors on roses, but we just casually call them thorns. It’s a bit like mistaking a lion for every big cat you see—close, but not quite.
Here’s the fascinating part: thorns are like natural barbed wire for plants, tough and woody. Spines serve a similar purpose but come from leaves or stipules. Prickles, being from the epidermis or bark, lack the internal vascular tissue of thorns and spines and can be peeled away easily.
Take, for instance, in the Rosaceae family: hawthorns (like Crataegus) have true thorns, whereas roses (Rosa) and blackberries (Rubus) have prickles. And then there are cacti (Cactaceae), which are famous for their spines—modified leaves, can you believe it? And have you heard of devil’s club (Oplopanax horridus)? It’s covered in spines that come from leaf tissue.
(Hawthorn)
Knowing these distinctions can help botanists identify and classify plants, revealing fascinating relationships between different species. It’s like realizing that while all SUVs are cars, not all cars are SUVs—the details matter.
In summary, thorns are modified stems, spines are modified leaves or stipules, and prickles are outgrowths from the epidermis. And hey, while it’s perfectly fine to call rose prickles “thorns” in casual conversation, knowing the difference might just win you some points in a trivia game!