This really feels like it was written by a Fairy Tale writer like a woman self-inserted as Clarina seeking a Prince to take her away
Now that I think about it, it feels like parallels to Sleeping Beauty and Rapunzel - fairy tales that also represent a parent's worries with the daughter's wellbeing and her coming to adulthood going away with a loved one.
You'd be a bit blindsided since the introduction is with Clarina using the genetically altered plants to expose stairs and all early, but this also places her as a heir (princess) in a castle with spiky vines everywhere keeping anyone away.