A thorny question

Ray of No Direction blogged recently about the hazard of cycling along a towpath where the boundary hedge has just been trimmed.

This got me thinking (I know, I know). What happened in the days of horse-drawn boats? Did thorns not fall on the ground when the hedges were trimmed? Do horses not get thorns in their hooves? Were the hedges not thorn hedges? Were the hedges not trimmed?


This is David trying not to get punctures in four wheels.