The Joy of Growing Climbing Rose Bushes

Growing climbing rose bushes adds so much beauty to entrances and walls.  You have numerous species from which to choose that include ever-blooming, ramblers, pillars, trailing, and so on.  No matter the type of climbing rose bush you consider, keep in mind that some type of support will be needed.  Once you decide on the type of climber, you may want to place them along the fence line, beside an archway, or on a trellis attached to the deck.  With a little help, you will end up with strong, healthy roses that climb. 

The key is that even while the rose bush is young, it will need some type of support to protect it from wind damage. Climbing roses could could be planted and trained to grow on fences, trellises, pillars, walls, outdoor sheds, arbors, and so on. It is vital that you provide support from the start to teach the bush to grow laterally, in so doing you will end up with an abundance of blooming flowers.

The other option is to train climbing rose bushes to grow upwards or vertically. In this case, the plants will grow short spurts going up and down the primary stem off of which blooms originate. A rose bush such as this needs about seven hours of sunlight every day but not direct sunlight. For the best blooms, the plant would need the seven hours of filtered sunlight coupled with five hours direct sunlight.

One of the things you need to think about when growing climbing roses is the height of the plant at maturity. For instance, some rose species will grow to six or eight feet tall while others reach 30 feet. Knowing the maturity height will help you choose the best place to plant, as well as the type of support eventually needed.

The actual height climbing rose bushes reach depends not just on the species but also the climate for the geographical location where you live. Additionally, some bushes will bloom only in the spring or summer, while others such as the ever-bloomer species produces gorgeous blooms all year round. Because of this, it will be important for you to determine what you want.

A huge benefit of growing climbing rose bushes instead of traditional roses is that pruning is done very little. In fact, the first two years of the bushes’ life, no pruning is done at all. This is actually important in that pruning before this time could have a negative impact on the growth of the plant, as well as the number of blooms it produces. Some of the more experienced rose growers actually wait up to four years to do the first pruning. No matter when this is done, the smaller, older, and slow growing canes near the base of the plant should be cut.

The goal when growing a climbing a rose bush is to get the young, vibrant canes to grow. By using the appropriate support, the canes are easily trained. All of this information is important but the most vital piece of advice is to be extremely patient. Usually, climbing rose bushes take longer to settle into their new home and product blooms than other types of plants. However, in time, you will end up with a healthy rose bush loaded with sweet smelling and colorful blooms.