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Climbing roses produce two kinds of shoots:
the main structural canes and the flowering shoots, which grow from the canes.
The long structural canes must be tied or woven into a support to keep the flowers off the
ground. If possible, install the support before planting your roses. Roses require
at least 6 hours of sunlight during the growing season and fertile, well-drained soil.
Choose a support:
Roses produce more flowers when the structural canes grow horizontally, such as along a
fence, than when grown vertically, as on a rose tower. When selecting a trellis, also
consider ease of access for pruning and the trellis' ability to hold the weight of a full
grown rose in wet and windy weather.
Install trellis:
Be sure the support is firmly anchored in the ground and strong enough for the mature
weight of the plants. If growing against a building, position the trellis a few feet from
the wall to allow for air circulation and maintenance.
Place it at right angles to the prevailing wind or in a sheltered spot in very windy
areas.
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Plant rose:
Dig a hole twice as wide as the root spread and about 2 feet deep with the center about 18
to 30 inches from the support.
Mix compost or well rotted manure and a handful of bone meal or super-phosphate with the
removed soil. If planting a bare root rose, make a cone of soil in the center of the hole
on which to drape the roots. Plant the graft union, the bulge where the top joins the
bottom, 2 to 6 inches below the soil line in cold-winter climates, slightly above the soil
level in warmer regions. Adjust the soil level under the plant accordingly.
Attach canes:
Select the sturdiest structural canes and tie them loosely to the support with strips of
stretchy cloth, such as pantyhose.
Space the canes evenly and, ideally, as close to horizontal as possible.
Maintain:
Allow climbers to grow un-pruned, except to remove dead or broken branches, for two or
three years. On established plants, prune dead, damaged, and overcrowded canes to the
base. Tie in new canes to replace them. Prune the flowering side shoots to two to three
buds above the structural canes during the dormant season.
Tips:
Provide winter protection in USDA Zones 7 and colder by untying canes and laying
them gently on the
ground.
Pin them down with U-shaped wire staples and cover with soil or mulch.
Plant a clematis vine 2 to 3 feet away from your climbing rose and train them to grow
together for an
extended flowering display.
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