How dare I opine on my two favorite roses? After all, the rose “community” has a level of intellectual fetishism on par with other obsessions like baseball statistics and jam band tape archiving. I’m too much of a generalist to be trusted in the rose world. But I can’t resist.
But let me first, commit rose apostasy. I hate bush roses. Rose leaves, in my opinion, are ugly. When a rose bush is not in bloom I think that the leaves and stems don’t hold much visual interest. There are many other flowering shrubs that are visually interesting year round. But I make an exception for climbing roses. And I like the smell and symbolism of the rose.
Several years ago, when it came to planting two roses to cover the entrance arbor to our house I chose two common varieties that I thought could tolerate our horrible soil and dry conditions:
Don Juan
This stunning, deep red climbing rose was developed by Michele Malandrone and first sold in 1958. It has an intense, complex scent. I chose it because I heard that it was drought tolerant. It’s also easy to find.
Iceberg Climbing Rose
I refer to this rose as the “gas station rose” for its ubiquity. Frankly, it’s an unimaginative choice but the thing is as tough as nails. It laughs at bad soil and low water. The only downside is that, like most climbing roses, it has absolutely no scent at all.
Do you have a favorite climbing rose? Leave a comment!
I liked out mature “Cecile Brunner” climbing rose hedge plants so much that I added another one along another section of the same chain link fence between our house and the neighbors. I can’t totally speak to the drought tolerance as these happen to be adjacent to the only section of lawn we have, so are near sprinklers and such (and whose roots also likely benefit from the neighbors sprinklers as well). However, the mature ones are nice 10ft tall screens between our yard and the neighbors, are evergreen, have handled numerous fierce windstorms withhout a hitch, and are currently blooming sweet little pink flowers everywhere. The new planting is also taking nicely. We don’t really fertilize much outside of once or twice yaerly mulching to help the dirt. The mature ones have an apple tree in their midst, and seem to play nicely with it. I like that it leaves an open undercanopy for critters, children to sit under, or other plantings, if desired.
Thanks P for the suggestion. Googled it and it’s a pretty rose.
I would love suggestions for a climbing rose with a scent that can climb about 25 feet high (if such a rose exists). We have a second level deck that could use some privacy and beauty so I figured scent could also play a factor.
Hopefully someone else can answer this question. I should have noted that Don Juan only grows to around 10 to 12 feet. Iceberg just a bit longer (it seems just a little more vigorous than Don Juan).
Felicite et Perpetue will grow like a fiend. But mine is came from a cutting and I do see it listed online in the U.S.
I have a thing for single roses, so my favorite climbers are R. ‘Altissimo’, a gorgeous true red with beautiful yellow stamens in the open center, and R. ‘The Mermaid’ – a huge rambling climber that will grow anywhere. Both have their major bloom in the spring, and then a sporadic showing through the year.
Such gorgeous plants, with lovely leaves too.
I agree with you about roses as a plant – ugly. But I do plant R. ‘Iceberg’ all the time, because it is so tough, fresh, and kind of wild looking.
Your choices are both fantastic!
I have 3 Joseph’s Coat climbers. They are gorgeous and vigorous. I have one beautiful pink climber with the most amazing scent but alas I lost the name of it a long time ago. It’s been moved 3 or 4 times, usually at bad times of the year and always recovers well.
I too have been thinking about climbing roses. I like them much more that bush roses and love gathering the hips for tea. Any ideas for one that would tolerate high moisture? Pacific North West Climate and we live beside a river.
My parents live on Galveston Bay and they have a New Dawn climbing rose that is gorgeous and vigorous, it takes wet conditions, hurricane winds, salt spray, humidity and heat and still looks gorgeous. I’m about 20 miles further inland and my roses aren’t nearly as pretty.
I second the Cecile Brunner rose. It has the most beautiful little pink flowers (at least they’re little here in Phoenix) and when I open the back door I can smell them from across the yard. Sadly, we had to take ours out, but I miss it and will likely try to replant one.
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