![]() ![]() This species, probably because the birds like to spread the seeds around, can be a bit of a stickery nuisance, and it is in fact a bit invasive in various places. Robins, mockingbirds, and cedar-waxwings gobble them up. Of course, as they develop, they will take on a very attractive color, a sort of red-orange (like the one in our front yard), but some cultivars will have brilliant scarlet fruits, or even yellow ones. The flowers are fragrant: a kind of stinky fragrance, but not too bad. Plenty of pollinators will be attracted to them.įollowing the flowers, young green fruits develop, and anatomically, they resemble tiny little apples. ![]() Lots of flowers will be clustered together at blooming time, throughout the spring. The flowers are small and white, with 5 petals. The plants are partially evergreen, as they tend to hold on to a lot of their foliage throughout the winter, at least in the South. The leaves are deep green, sort of strap-shaped, sometimes notched at the tip. It sometimes attains the stature of a small tree, and is often grown as a hedge. Firethorn, pyracantha, Pyracantha koidzumii, is native to Taiwan, and is very popular now in cultivation, along with several closely related species. It’s a member of the rose family, actually, but not too closely related to roses themselves. Our Mystery Plant produces plenty of long, sharp thorns. ![]() I know, I know…it seems a small matter, except for a botanist. The point (pun intended!) of all this is that roses, despite their famous stickeriness, do not bear thorns. Thorns also sometimes exhibit leaves, which further suggests their modification as stems. Lastly, “thorns” are modified stems, and they, along with spines, do contain vascular tissue. “Spines” are modified leaves, and the spines of a cactus would be a good example. #PLANT WITH SOFT THORNS SKIN#The stickers on a rose plant are what we botanists call “prickles,” which are usually broad-based structures with a sharp point, easily distinguished from the stem tissue on which they occur.Ī prickle is basically a modification of the skin (or epidermis) of the stem, and if you wanted to, you could probably pop one off the stem (carefully, and with gloves on) without breaking any connecting vascular tissue. Pets and plants: Learn what common plants in home gardens can poison your petsīooks: A bouquet of books to delight and instruct your favorite gardener | Buchan Gardening: Two fragrant old-fashioned Southern favorites to plant in your yard | Susan Barnes He did get it right in the above quotation, though. Now, many of his “rose” mentionings involve those sharp things on the branches (what we Southerners like to call “stickers”), and most of the time he refers to them as “thorns”…which is wrong. Of course, he wrote many references to roses, seemingly one of his very favorite flowers. #PLANT WITH SOFT THORNS FULL#His works are full of plant references, and thus fascinating for a botanist. I had to do a bit of research on William Shakespeare. If necessary, protect these plants from frost with frostcloth or another covering (see Cold Protection for details).What though the rose has prickles, yet 'tis pluck'd… - Shakespeare, Venus and Adonis, line 592 Do this during warmer weather so any new growth won't be damaged #PLANT WITH SOFT THORNS FREE#You see tall thorny stems with no leaves, feel free to cut them wayīack. You can supplement feedings with bone meal to promote more flowering. They'll live.they just won't be as pretty.įertilize with a good granular fertilizer 3 times a year (spring, summer and fall). Make sure this plant has plenty of drying-out time between waterings.Ĭrown of thorns that look leafless and leggy have probably not received enough regular water to keep the foliage full. Water during dry spells or, better yet, run irrigation on a regular basis. If you place these shrubs correctly, caring for them is a snap. These evergreen plants are slow growers, love full to part sun, and doīest in Zone 10.like most succulents they can be cold-sensitive.Īll varieties are considered deer-resistant, though nothing is really deer-proof. ![]() Karolla and other small varieties can be kept 1 to 2 feet tall. Thai hybrids grow the largest - as much as 3 feet, though you can trim to 2 feet tall. ![]()
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