Care-free vines: climbing rose

Climbing roses lend a romantic touch to any garden. Their height and bright colours let any garden look full and mature. Here's a guide to growing climbing roses:

Many different roses of mixed ancestry are called climbers, and all tend to bloom heavily in early summer on long canes that grew the season before.

• Modern hybrids often rebloom in fall when given good care.
• Climbing roses need a sturdy trellis, wall or arbour to shoulder their weighty canes.
• At the base of these beauties you can plant small daffodils or other spring-flowering bulbs.
• Plant larger companions far enough away to let air circulate around the canes, discouraging fungal infections.
• The cool blue flowers of catmint are a classic companion for roses, as is clematis, which discreetly intertwines with rose canes and blooms in midsummer, when rose flowers fade.

Plant climbing roses in spring, just as they are emerging from dormancy.

• Dig a planting hole 45 centimetres (18 inches) wide and deep and mix in an eight-centimetre-thick (three-inch-thick) layer of compost or other organic matter.
• Plant container-grown roses that are growing on their own roots at the same depth at which they grew in their container.
• Plant grafted roses, which have a knobby lump called a graft union at the bottom of the primary cane, by setting the graft union five to ten centimetres (two to four inches) below soil level if you live in cold areas; the colder the zone, the deeper the graft union should go.
• When planting a bare-root rose, such as those from mail-order nurseries, build a cone of soil in the hole, making the cone tall enough to allow the graft union to be placed as described above.
• Carefully spread the roots over the cone and cover with soil.
• After planting either type, water well and keep the soil barely moist the first season.
• Spread an eight-centimetre-thick (three-inch-thick) mulch of compost to retain soil moisture and act as a barrier to prevent soil-borne fungal-disease spores from splashing onto foliage.
• Prune climbing roses to enhance sun exposure on new growth while eliminating old branches, which are at risk for developing disease.

After the first year, prune back old canes after they bloom, but don't be too aggressive with reblooming cultivars.

• Cut canes just above a leaf with five (never three) leaflets and cut at a 45° angle so that rainwater will run off and not rot the cut ends.
• Flower buds will develop on the canes at these points.
• Climbing roses do not actually climb but lean on their support, so tie canes to the support with a soft, stretchy material, such as old pantyhose or strips of T-shirts.
• Fertilize climbing roses in the spring and again in midsummer, using a rose fertilizer at the rate given on the package label.
• In Zone 5, mound 30 to 45 centimetres (12 to 18 inches) of soil or rotted manure over the base of the rose in early winter to insulate it, and remove the material in spring.
• The same diseases that plague other roses can weaken climbers. To deter leaf-disfiguring fungal diseases, such as powdery mildew and black spot, choose a sunny location with good air circulation.
• To water, use soaker hoses with the holes pointing down rather than the oscillating type of sprinkler, to reduce the spread of black spot.
• Japanese beetles are serious pests. Use a botanical insecticide on plants.
• Roses attract deer. Tuck bars of deodorant soap among canes to deter them or apply a commercial repellent according to label directions.

There you have it -- now you're ready to plant and care for these beautiful flowers. Climbing roses are an excellent way to make a young garden appear full and mature. If you care for them properly, they can be a staple in your garden for years to come!