Crossword Genius

Rose, being so prickly, calls for careful handling (6)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

thorny

I'm a little stuck... Click here to teach me more about this clue!

'rose being so' is the definition.
Both the answer and definition are adjectives. Perhaps there's a link between them I don't understand?

'prickly calls for careful handling' is the wordplay.
I cannot really understand how this works, but
'prickly' could be 'thorn' (I've seen this before) and 'thorn' is found within the answer.
A single letter 'y' remains which might be clued in a way I don't see.
This may be the basis of the clue (or it may be nonsense).

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for thorny that I've seen before include "Not easy" , "Covered in spikes" , "Spiky (of bush or problem)" , "Tricky" , "Spiny - difficult and controversial" .)

I've seen this clue in the Evening Standard.
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