Eglantine

Several scenes in the play A Midsummer Nights dream takes place in a forest. Shakespeare describes several plants and flowers that grew in the forests of England at the time and I found the description fascinating. One plant is the Eglantine. I wanted to know more about this plant and an internet search told me the Eglantine is a kind of rose also known as sweet brier. Here is a picture of the Eglantine from the internet

Eglantine has prickly and thorny stems. It is supposed to grow in Asia and Europe. I think I have seen this in Kerala, though I could be wrong. It is a simple variety of rose that grows in homes. It needs care but not a lot of care. There are two kinds of roses in Kerala. One type comes in unique and rare colors. People who love gardening grow such rare roses as a hobby. They tend to it with fertilizer and great care. But there is a variety that is there in lots of homes and is not the rare kind. Many just grow it for the pink flower. The eglantine is or looks similar to the more common variety of rose in Kerala I think.