Maybe our first reaction is that it's such a shame that roses have thorns that could hurt us this way. Why do they have to do that? All we really wanted to do was pick them and love them and then watch them slowly die. Why would a such a beautiful rose take offense to that?
Okay, let's get serious. Why do roses really have thorns? Is there a big secret behind this, or is the answer so obvious it might just poke us right in the nose? Let's examine the answer to these questions just a bit.
Roses happen to be beautiful to look at, fragrant to smell, and sweet to taste. All of that would most likely attract all sorts of creatures great and small, right? Right! So, all of these differently sized creatures would obviously be going up to the roses and looking at them, smelling them, and tasting them. All of that would be pretty rough on the rose plant, wouldn't it? That's where the thorns come in.
Rose plants developed these thorns after awhile of this abuse so that these creatures would leave them alone. It was the only way the roses had to protect themselves from being destroyed. Without the thorns, the roses wouldn't last very long. So, you guessed it. The thorns on roses are a defense mechanism to keep them from being harmed.
Very interesting exept roses do not have thorns, they have prickles.
ReplyDeleteI have just watched a programme called QI wich said roses don't have thorns. They are prickles.
ReplyDeleteFirst off a prickle is the short outgrowth point of a thorn. So yes roses do have thorns. And secondly who's on here commenting at the 3:30 a.m.
DeleteThorns are modified branches that project from the stem and branches of a woody plant. They are very sharp, and quite strong as they are made of the same stuff as the stem of the tree or bush. Thorns are deeply embedded in the woody structure of the plant, and can’t be broken off easily. Those nasty points on the stem of the rose are not, in fact, true thorns, but are what scientists call prickles.
DeletePrickles are small, sharp outgrowths of the plant’s outer layers, or skin-like epidermis, and the sub-epidermal layer just beneath it. Unlike a thorn, a prickle can be easily broken off the plant because it is really a feature of the outer layers rather than part of the wood, like a thorn.
Some species have thorns, some have prickles
DeletePotatos patatas potatoes....
DeleteNope different things. It's possible to snap off a roses spiny bits, therefore they are actually prickles. Rose prickles will snap off easily without much force, while any sort of thorn will not. It's not rocket science, people. Just google it and see.
DeleteYa
Deletehas anyone EVER proven the reason claimed for why rose bushes have thorns. any witness to them deterring anything? Or is this another urban myth?
DeleteSome species have thorns. some have prickles
ReplyDeleteActually roses DO have thorns. My roses and my neighbors roses have thorns NOT prickles.
ReplyDeleteWhy is everyone talking about if roses have thorns or prickles!
ReplyDeleteI get the concept, I just can't see,or imagine anyone saying, "ouch, I just got my finger pricked by a prickle" - ⚘
ReplyDeleteA pickled prickle pricked a pickled prickle
ReplyDelete