Roses are very vain. They don't like to share their root space, water or nutrients. As long as your weavers don't invade their space, you are good. Also, be sure that the water requirements are the same. A weaver that wants a lot of water is not good for roses, who like it moist to dry.

Sweet Woodruff

Some may say they are more of an invader though.

Clematis - comes in many colors and size of bloom. My roses do not mind it at all. I love the dark purple ones.

I also have a heritage Morning Glory which has small flowers. Usually they are dark pink, but on the same plant they can also be dark purple, blue, white, and a pale pink. They weave all over, and re-seed. However, they are not difficult to tear out of where I do not want them, and they are an annual which dies each Fall. Also, they have small leaves and do not overwhelm other plants. Many people hate all Morning Glories because they are invasive, and I know there are Morning Glories which are impossible to get rid of, but this one is welcome in my garden. I just pull up the sprouts if they appear where I do not want them.

Jackie

campanula pocharskyana - vigorous but easily dealt with by simply pulling out excess leafage.
Hardy geraniums - Patricia is a more toned down version of G.psilostemon or Anne Folkard
Annual phlox (drummondii)
geum chiloense - the leaves are clumpy but the stems are long and will 'float' above the foliage
Clematis integrifolia - height varies from 2-3 feet to 8-10 but will scramble round and about roses better than the more vigorous viticellas and texensis
lathyrus - there are many peas, from the annual sweet peas (L.odoratus) and L.tingitanus to the spring perennials (L/vernus, venetus, aureum, pratense to the scrambling perennials (but not the too vigorous latifolia....more like rotundifolia).
indigofera heterantha - also lespedeza thunbergia
sollya heterophylla, tweedia caerulea, codonopsis clematidea - a trio of blues
sphaeralcea munroana, fendleri
helianthemum nummularis

I have to agree that Hardy Geranium (Cranesbill) is a super weaver (or flopper) in my garden. It looks great and there are so many varieties that are long blooming.
I planted quite a bit of Heliotrope this year (annual here) and it was really pretty and filled in around the "knees".
I think different varieties of Nepeta are great too. And I love my Pinks (dianthus)...some of them flop, some of them stand upright...
As for the glue...After you've grown your choices for awhile I would choose several weavers that do well in your garden and repeat them throughout. This provides unity and harmony making the garden a cohesive whole.
Down in DFW I'm not sure what will thrive. Salvias...but they aren't weavers...
Do you have any public gardens you might visit for ideas?
Susan

If you're leery of planting perennial white-flowered sweet woodruff (Gallium odoratum, aka Asperula odorata), there is a self-seeding annual blue-flowered relative (Asperula orientalis). If you google its Latin name, you'll find plenty of seed-sources.

I also found something I can't wait to try -- an old, self-seeding strain of fragrant trailing/climbing petunias that come in shades of bluish-lavender, purple and white.

:-)

~Christopher

Here is a link that might be useful: Old-fashioned petunias at Select Seeds

I don't know how these would do down in the heat and humidity of Dallas-Ft. Worth, but oregano will wander around without eating anything up, and there's a golden-leaved variety. There are also creeping thymes: Thymus longicaulis, and another that's caraway scented that I don't remember the name of. They don't mind part shade but probably require decent drainage and not much summer water.
I have some self-seeding annuals in the garden that are rather pleasant, and if they grow where I don't want them I just pull them up. Perilla looks something like a purple-leaved coleus and has edible leaves--it's used in Vietnamese cuisine--and will grow nearly anywhere, but without getting obnoxious about it. Violas, V. tricolor and cultivated relatives, self-seed profusely in my garden, and varieties interbreed and give variable, interesting offspring. Nigella, love-in-a-mist, is very light-textured, the blue flowers are a good color, and the seed capsules are interesting, as is the flower. Again, I don't know how these do in your conditions.
Melissa

I've been pleased the past few years with Mirabilis viscosa planted among otherwise gangly hybrid teas. It's a tender perennial (even here, but works fine as an annual) that wants heat (should be no problem where you are) with airy top branches that weave through the rose branches at about the 3' level but are not overbearing. The leaves are velvety.

I like Clematis integrifolia, too, and also grew that one from seed. It is tough but grows compatibly with other plants (unlike most of my other clematis, who seem bent on world domination).

The old-fashioned vining petunias have a nice scent -- the white ones that I grow came from the UC Berkeley Botanical Garden's rose garden via Annie's Annuals.

Here is a link that might be useful: Mirabilis viscosa pics

Those Mirabilis viscosa are really pretty Catspa. I like them and have never seen them before.
Susan

For a white "weaver", many folks have had stunning success with Alyssum. It's technically an annual, but where it's happy it will reseed and fill in well around any other plants without sucking too much moisture away. Sadly, it's never happy in my yard for some reason.

Cynthia

I have valerian. It's white, not showy, but undemanding, and flops all over the place. I'd love to grow gypsophilla, but have never managed it.

Melissa,

The caraway scented thyme is Thymus herba-barona. It grows here and so is not overly sensitive to rain. As you say Nigella is good and whenever I think of Nigella I also think of Flax, Linus perenne which might also work well.

Cath

Stenaria nigricans, the native bluets, have been very pretty all year. They are constantly full of the tiny white-pink flowers scattered atop the fine foliage. They kind of stuff in the bare spots like baby's breath in a flower arrangement, but they don't overwhelm other plants.

Blackfoot daisy--not a weaver, exactly, but what a wonderful plant. Mounding fine foliage, covered with flowers almost all year--such a care free beautiful plant.

The old fashioned sweet peas--instead of running them up a trellis let them twine around in the beds.

Here in my climate Campanula pocharskyana is actually too successful and can be invasive.

And while hardy geraniums are among my favorite companion plants, watch out for those that spread too enthusiastically. Bloody cranesbill is rather aggressive, and I may decide to remove it all together. If I can. 'Biokovo' wants to be a carpet, whether I want it to or not.

Rosefolly

This post was edited by rosefolly on Wed, Nov 6, 13 at 0:49

The Thymus herba-barona is named that because it was used to flavor barons of beef, that is, large beef roasts.

Cath

meslgh, if you like the look of an inground rose bouquet, plant some Euphorbia 'Diamond Frost' among your roses. It has the softening look of gypsophila, which has never done well for me. Here in the DFW Metroplex, it's everblooming through our hot, dry summers and keeps on until temps are near freezing, but then it comes back in the spring. And if it doesn't return for you, you can get it again at any garden center. It's not a weaver per se, but it could certainly have the look of a cloud of small white flowers wandering through the garden, providing continuity you mentioned. Lou

yep, Rosefolly, the campanula can be a bit of a beast for me - I just find that grabbing all the loose stems with two hands and tugging sorts it out.
A definite shout out for callirhoe - I have the bushii as well as the involucrata - a lovely undemanding plant.
Am growing another native from down your way - linum rigida, aka Texas Flax - looking forward to this one as all the flaxes are deeply rewarding. especially the pretty little white fairy flax L.cathcarticum

I don't know if it's because of my climate or my soil, but many of the plants mentioned so far do not behave like weavers for me. They are either too stiff and upright or too low, growing more like ground cover, at least with taller roses. Rozanne, for instance, weaves well enough but only along the ground. Sweet woodruff is definitely a ground cover here, not more than 5 or 6 inches tall.

I have only a couple of true weavers now. The maroon Greek scabious, Knautia macedonica, is a graceful weaver with yellow roses. It's tall but not too floppy. Potentilla atrosanguinea is bright red and a perfect weaver. The only white or cream I have now is gillenia but I think gypsophila was even better as long as it lived. The only flax I've tried, Linum perenne, was good but shortlived. I have great hopes for some seedlings of Thalictrum rochebrunianum but they are still too young to judge. Many clematis are good, too, as long as they don't take over. I will try a couple of the newer patio types from Raymond Evison.

Cath, thanks for the name and information. You do come up with interesting facts.
Melissa

Mariannese,

Here Linum perenne although, as you say, is short lived, reseeds itself well. We started it from a packet of seeds sown on the ground IRRC.

I must confess: no sooner did I tell you that I never had disease problems with the hybrid lilies than they contracted, well, something - still to be determined. I think that it was an insect but I think that if it returns next season, it will be easier to diagnose. It is too bad because I think that both you and I would be happier with disease and bug free lilies.

Cath

I'm a little confused about what other gardeners here consider weavers but this thread has brought up a lot of interesting plants, some of them I've grown and some are new. I thought I'd add one that I'm liking more and more every year: feverfew.

It self-seeds nicely, occasional thinning perhaps is necessary as the years go by. But it has lovely foliage and tiny daisy-like flowers. And once it start self-sowing you will almost always have some feverfews in bloom. I still have it blooming in my garden in November.

This was fascinating to read, what lovely thinking. I've got weavers and had no idea. The greatest success was accidental.
My garden's separated from a glorious meadow by a flatboard rail fence and gate. At the gate, on the meadow side is a massive, old Cecile Bruner, about 15 feet wide and 8-10 feet high. In the 2 years I've been here I've cleared out the abandoned under-mess of tangled deadwood, up about 3 feet from the ground. It responded, easily doubled in size and pink rose production! This summer it started sending out huge, long tendrils in sky bound arches. I organized them into bowers, supported by dead branches I found here and there, tall enough to walk under. Then kept intertwining. There are now three bowers leading into the meadow, which the Cecile Bruner seems to enjoy, producing new shoots and blossoms. I wasn't sure.
Each bower gets thicker and thicker, I keep weaving. On the garden inside of the fence, new very long tendrils were shooting out high and perpendicular to the fence. So I started weaving them, supported by (and supporting) 6 foot dead tree limb just barely pushed into the ground, and reaching across to the staircase that goes to the upstairs, about an 8 foot stretch.
But here's the real weave of companion plants. Unbeknownst to me, a healthy nasturtium had migrated to a pot below the tree limb supporting the new bower. Strong orange flowers began to appear as it rose up, around, and through the Cecile Bruner. Incredible! Sunlight passing through the now giant nasturtium leaves and orange flowers next to the delicate pink roses are just a delight and a half. Along the fence just past the Cecile Bruner is an old cherry tree with a massive Bird of Paradise at its base. I didn't plant either, just got lucky. And have been spending most of the first year plus cleaning out the mess at the base of everything here from so much neglect and everything's doubling in size.
It took me a while to get to the point, but just to add...it was incredibly easy, I keep the bowers getting fat, help the nasturtium find its way...and wow.

Here is a link that might be useful: The Hawks Perch - Expressionist Art

Holy Cowgirl, how about some photos? That sounds absolutely amazing and similar to what I am attempting.
Thanks
Susan

Hi, Susan. Went for a look, lots of pictures but not the most recent blooming of potent nasturtium/rose mix. This will give you an idea of the layout. The Cecile Bruner goes through dramatic cycles --multi-bloom to no bloom--the latter current. What was so impressive to this new gardener was how easy it was. I kept thinking to find carpenter, buy trellis, worried roses might not like it. But a tall stick from the meadow's pine tree, a bit of ribbon attaaching first rose vine shoot to stair rail, just keeps growing. I knew I loved bowers, now I can't make enough. Thanks. Let me know how yours goes. (Between stairs and meadow fence is a large Breath of Heaven hedge, the Bird of Paradise, the Cherry Tree, then the Cecile Bruner leaning in from the meadow side. To the left of the gate are myriad Pride of Madeira, both sides of fence).

Holycowgirl, what you've done is beautiful. Lou

I love what you describe and your photo is beautiful. Do you know the name of the nasturtium that is climbing in the bower? There aren't many that actually climb, and I'd like to try one. Diane

Hi Diane, my common or garden nasturtiums climb if they're given a half a chance.
Trish.

The nasturtium seeds that I see for sale everywhere (and the ones I have grown) are all for shorter varieties, that may or may not scramble through other plants depending on conditions. The only really long trailing-climbing nastie I know of is one that could (at one time, at least) be seen in the Isabella Stewart Gardner museum in Boston. I'm no expert on nasturtiums, though, for sure!
Here's a pic of my plants that weave a little among the roses--coreopsis, Jupiter's Beard, etc. This pic was taken July 30, when it was 102 degrees, and after weeks of similar temps. Diane

Nanadoll, if you look at Select Seed's website, their 2013 listing shows some nasturtiums as being 1 foot tall (Whirlybird, Vesuvius, Golden King, Empress of India, Black Velvet) some as being 3 feet tall (Forest Flame, Golden Gleam, Hermine Grashoff, Milkmaid) and some as 6 feet tall (Indian Cress, Moonlight, Variegated Queen).

Renee's Garden also has a number of varieties listed, with Moonlight, Amazon Jewel and Spitfire being classified as climbing.
http://www.reneesgarden.com/seeds/seeds-hm/flowersN.htm#nast

Botanical Interests has a number of varieties, but only one climbing - Trailing Single Blend
http://www.botanicalinterests.com/products/index/srch:nasturtium

It may be that you have to purchase the seeds via mail order if your local stores do not carry the taller types.

Alaska has been semi climbing in my garden if it has something to support it, even though it is listed as being one of the shorter types.

Here is a link that might be useful: nasturtium listing at Select Seeds

This post was edited by plantloverkat on Thu, Nov 7, 13 at 18:09

Thank yous to the one who started this interesting subject. And for all the others. I'm new here and can't figure out how to give individual responses yet. And thought I could post a couple of pictures but seems only possible to do one. This is the nasturtium on the other side of the garden, growing up alongside the house and protected from wind, getting lots of sun. I'm sorry I have no idea what the variety is. I moved inland a bit from coastal Big Sur, brought all from that garden I could, some things have popped up back to life, and I had nasturtium growing in everything. If you have trouble with them climbing up strings or sticks, they also do magnificently dropping down....hanging pots, from balconies, window boxes, nestled in sunny tree branch, along walls and rocks, fences etc. I have wanted a wall of blue morning glories weaving with orange nasturtium (and maybe roses, jasmine?) and will try in spring.

Diane, your roses are magnificent. And in such heat. mine just frizzle. i'd love it if you would tell me which will survive it.

Thanks for the info on nasturtium seeds, plantloverkat. I'm going to try out a few. I would be thrilled to find a climbing variety.
Titian, thank you so much. I agree that lots of roses frizzle in the heat, including the extreme dryness of my climate. Hands down, number1 heat resistant rose here is Julia Child, which was pictured. Golden Celebration is good, too, as well as Frederic Mistral and Ascot; Easy Does It looks good in the heat so far. After that, are a number of roses that are ok in heat, plus a good number that don't do well at all. It helps to choose companion plants that shrug off heat well, so there are always many things in bloom. Hope that helps. Diane

Thanks, Diane. I'm surprised to hear about Golden Celebration. I've tossed any David Austins that I've had, as their disease resistance was almost non-existent here. Abraham Derby was the least poor, but as the blooms hung down and all I saw was the pale outer petals, he went too. But GC looks lovely, and I have a spot I'd like to try it. Do I gather you think roses burn more if the ground is very dry? We've had v little rain for months. My roses burn on a mildly hot day. The air most days, just now, is filled with smoke from bushfires or from burning off.
I've just looked up Julia Child, and I think that I'll give that a go instead. i love the rounded look of your bushes, and it gets v good ratings on HMF.
Is Ascot the one bred by Evers?
A warning about the climbing nasturtiums - they grow like a weed here. I am eradicating them from the garden.
Trish.
PS I love your comments, they're so apt, thoughtful and generous.

Thank you Holycowgirl for sharing photos and as always, Nana!
I may try nasturtiums here (I love the foliage) but I believe we get "too hot too fast" for them to do well.
I have found some delphs that do well for me but nothing like they do in their glory.
Susan

Thank you, titian. I was referring to roses shriveling up quickly from our very low air humidity here combined with hot temps and lots of sun. Some roses seem to almost love it, but others have blooms, as you know, that just shrivel in hours. I'm not sure why Golden Celebration does so well, since it seemed to hate the heat its first two years, then adjusted to the sun and temps its third year. Angel Face does well in the dry heat, too. Yes, Ascot was hybridized by Evers. In this environment, it seems almost as indestructible as Julia Child, the Iron Lady. Another rose that seems to be made of sterner stuff is Evers' Augusta Luise (I keep babbling about this one on the forum). That one can handle the heat for sure, and mine is only six months old.
Susan, I agree about weather getting too hot too fast for nasturtiums. I haven't had very good luck with them, but a friend who lives here has grown some good ones. I think I'll try again. I don't think they'll be invasive here. Diane

Diane, I've been onto HMF and googled, but it seems neither Julia Child or Ascot are available here. I can get Augusta Luise however, and it looks very pretty, but will have to ponder where it could go.
I may well replace Ebb Tide (even the spring blooms burnt) with Angel Face.
Thankyou again for all your help.
Trish.

Trish, I just checked and I believe Julia Child is called Soul Mate in Australia--don't know why they have to do these name changes to confuse everyone. She's the one to get if you can for the heat. You also might try substituting Twilight Zone for Ebb Tide. It doesn't fade like ET and looks just like ET. TZ has the grandiflora growth habit which I like better, too. Hope this works out for you. Diane

Here's a pic of Twilight Zone.

Thankyou Diane, and JC is available here under the name Soul Mate. I didn't think to google it under it's pseudonyms.
I can't find anyone who sells Twilight Zone, but as it is a fairly recent rose, that may well change. I will keep an eye out for it.
I have Mutabilis planted next to Ms Tillier. Do you think JC would look ok in front of MT, or be a bit bright? I'm planning on a Mutabilis coloured bed, ie pink/maroon and buff/ yellow.