I'm not in Illinois, but am in zone 5, central missouri. my recomendation is a climber called "New Dawn". It's tough and flowers all summer long. It's very resistent to disease, never had to do a thing to mine, except prune to keep it under control. Give it lots of water till it's well established and then forget about it. I had an old one my mother planted twenty odd years ago and wanted a few for my house, finally saw them at the hardware store a few years back. I bet you could find it easily on the net. Try it, you wont be disapointed!
Megan

I had this rose - New Dawn - once. It didn't do well for me. It is very disease resistant and has pretty flowers with continuous bloom. My only complaint is it had a considerable amount of dieback each year and although it bounced back - this rose gets HUGE! Its basically a rambler - its parent is Dr. Van Fleet - similar in flower form, but it only blooms once. I would suggest that if you get this rose - place it in a protected and sturdy (meaning large) supported area. BTW, if you like this rose, another one to consider is "Awakening". Its a sport of New Dawn, but it has a double bloom formation instead of the semi-double blooms of New Dawn.

I have several seven sisters red and pink that bloom from May to frost - can't beat that!

I always read that Seven Sisters was a summer bloomer only, with no repeat. Is that incorrect?

It depends on just how much work you want to put into it.

As mentioned the Explorer and some of the OGR roses are easy.

One usually ends up with an overgrown shrub unless you tip the climber, which can be a daunting task indeed. Especially as the climber matures and reaches its full growth potential. Many of these like 'Sombreuil Climber' can be breathtakingly beautiful and one will endure the onslaught of its to the bone slashing deep thorns with a smile while one tips or untips this beautiful beast.

OTOH 'Clair Matin' makes a very nice vase like shrub with little care.

Here is a link that might be useful: 'Clair Matin'

my seven sisters is a riot of blooms for about 1 month tops, mine is not a continuous bloomer.........

When I moved into my home they were planted all over and I just took the advice of my 80+ year old Grandmother that they were 7 sisters. They tend to have 7 blooms per(area?) for lack of a better word. But they do bloom untill frost and they grow like mad. If I had a digital camera I could gain a worldly decision if I have identified them correctly or not. Might I be mistaken?

I believe that its called Seven Sisters due to various shades of colors on the roses at any given time...

Any luck with Josephs' Coat in this area?

I don't have this rose, but my mom does - she lives in Chicago. She said that every year it has quite a bit of dieback - I believe that its basically, not a hardy in Zone 5.

'New Dawn' blooms heavily in June and sporadically throughout the summer, with another heavy flush in the fall in my garden just west of Chicago. I've had a couple of them covering an arbor for at least 12 years, and they have had serious dieback only once. I have clematis (C. viticella 'Polish Spirit') growing through them so that the color show is non-stop.

I've also had success with 'Polka' a soft peach that blooms steadily throughout the summer (pale blue C. 'Will Goodwin' on that one), and a single red, 'Robusta', that has canes as big around as my wrist. 'Aloha' has also been fairly good, although it does have a few black spot issues, and 'Dublin Bay' is a steady bloomer, too.

'Zepherine Drouhin' has bloomed well for me in partial shade and has been quite disease-free, despite the warnings I received about its susceptibilty to mildew.

I have to add, however, that in my experience, 'John Davis' is a DOG--blooms like mad for two weeks in June and then, no matter what I do to battle it, becomes so encrusted with powdery mildew that it looks like an 8' artemisia. Every year I threaten to rip it out, right after it blooms one more time . . .

I have an arbor covered with a white minature rose, I think it is a sport of New Dawn, approximately 20' long and continuing to grow( 15 yrs old) it blooms heavily in May and again in the fall and some thru out the summer,,,,,I just wish the bettles would not enjoy it so much,,,,,,,,so to the rose people is there a minature New Dawn White ? the bloosom is the size of a minature rose in clusters like grapes,,or can you identify it,,,,,,

This rose sounds like, "Sea Foam".

I had several seven sisters, babies picked up from my Aunt's plants on the south side. Grew like crazy!, but only bloomed once. It was so magnificent it was worth the down time.

Presently have a stairway to heaven (red) eating up one whole corner of the deck rail as it's arbor. Profuse bloomer, but the japanese beetles love it.

How about "Dublin Bay." White Flower Farm raves about it

I simply love my John Cabot - it is a wild thing but incredibly beautiful for the first flush - and then I cut it back and it continues to get occasional blooms all summer. Here's a pic from last year...

Here is a link that might be useful: {{gwi:1050960}}

Also lovely and grows big enough that you can train it as a climber is the rugosa 'Hansa'. Here it is on my back deck with a nearby double mock orange 'Snowflake' - there is a point when both are in full bloom and the flowers intermingle - the fragrance is something out of heaven. That's the one negative with the Canadian series is the have no fragrance while the rugosas, while miserably thorny, are completely hardy and smell wonderful.

Here is a link that might be useful: {{gwi:1050962}}

Okay everyone. I don't have any roses but I am starting to think about them. I am interested in rose and clematis companions. But my question is--I don't have a fence to grow climbing roses on, so what kind of roses do you use? Shrub Roses? I can't use pink or orange. Yellow, red, cream or white. Any ideas?

I have had the 'John Cabot' rose for 5 years. It is extremely hardy. I also think it is a very wild type cold hardy climber. The thorns are vicious. It does give a burst of color for the first bloom and intermittant blooms after that. It is really not a favorite. I wish I had planted a 'William Baffin' instead. I live in the Indianapois area and we always say this is the zombie zone.
This is Zone 5a. In March and April it can be 65to70 and 2 days later down into the teens or 20's. So I always prepare the suprises. We have actually had snowflakes around Memorial Day race time. Though it is very rare.
June in Indiana 5a ia glorious. My favorite month. I would honestly say that 'New Dawn' is my favorite clilmber.

I love those large hybrid tea style blooms on my Rose America [I think that is the name].

Hi there everyone,

As per my previous posts and my profile I am a relative newcomer to the United States. I emigrated here from England in 2002, arriving 2/14 (just call me a romantic).

We live on a 167 acre farm East of Independence MO. The immediate yard is approximately 90,000 sq ft. We recently bought 22 or 23 climbing roses of various names and colours to wend their way through a privacy fence around the inner yard (read flower garden).

I also have 20 Clematis to pick up from a local nursery to accentuate the roses during periods of there being no blooms. Or if I am fortunate enough, to have one compliment the other. How close to the Roses should the Clematis be planted? I have planted the Roses approximately eight feet apart.

We recently installed a deck and I read with some interest in a previous post about a rose climbing around a deck. I must admit I like the idea, but I did wonder about the thorns being so close to where people will be, do you find this a problem or do folks just tend to be wary of the roses and admire them from a distance.

Oh and last but not least I recently watched a TV program where a lady stuck a banana in the bottom of the hole where she planted a Rose, any comments critiscisms or suggestions greatfully accepted and encouraged.

Yours with grubby hands.

Steve the UKtransplant

I love climbing roses in my garden in SE Michigan, and some of my recommendations are the same as others above, but I think there are a few worth emphasizing/mentioning:

Viking Queeen - mentioned at least once above, but for me a real gem that is hardier than its parent New Dawn and more beautiful too. Rich pink, great fragrance, and best of all, puts on its best display in the fall when the weather cools, when it blooms heavily in late August and September and intermittently through to December in mild years. May ball in summer if the weather in June is hot and sticky.

Jeannie LaJoie- what a gem, abundant pink mini blooms, hardy and vigorous.

Alexander Mackenzie - I don't think anyone else mentioned this beautiful fragrant explorer, but for me it is one of the best of the explorers both as a shrub and a climber. Rich cerise-red, very fragrant blooms, much larger more hybrid tea like flowers than most explorers and fragrant unlike most. It is an excellent recurrent rose once well established, and makes a very big shrub (7'+) which produces long canes and can easily be trained as a short climber (up to 10'). Completely hardy in zone 5b, no dieback ever.

OK, now that I'm all excited about putting this rose next to the new arbor we plan to get, I've noticed that it's sold out for 2005 on several websites. Is there a good place in the area I should go to to look for plants? I live just north of Chicago but I have no idea about what local place is best for roses, or what to look for. My other roses are 3 plants I got for half price at Frank's at the end of the season, probably floribunda, so I don't know much about roses but I love them. Also, it's the entrance to the backyard, so I'm hoping Ramblin' Red would be safe to walk through on a regular basis. I think the arbor is going to be pretty wide, so maybe it won't be an issue.

So, where is your favorite place to get roses?

Joan,

The Growing Place in Naperville and Aurora is where I've purchased Ramblin' Red and John Davis. They have a great selection of own root roses.

I'm not sure what rose you are looking for, but there are several great mail order nurseries to consider. Pickering Nurseries in Canada is one of them. These are not own root roses though, but all of the roses that I have purchased from them have done really well.

Right now I have only two climbers. 'Don Juan' and 'Josephs Coat'
Don has done very well for me. It blooms in full in June, sporadically after that, then full again later in the summer/early fall.
Joseph has been a bit weaker, but I attribute that to not getting as much sun. Beautiful flower on this one. I hope it does better this year.
I am now looking for a good white climber to mingle with my red. suggestions?

Check out these white climbers:

White Dawn - Sport of New Dawn. Hardy to Zone 5.

Sombrieul - not supposed to be reliably hardy, but mine was planted in an open, windy area. It lasted for two years. Blooms are beautiful! Plant in sheltered area.

Seafoam - White w/slight pink. Very hardy. One that I will definitely be purchasing. Gets to be around 6' tall.

Ilse Krohn Superior- Kordes. Hardy, sporadic bloomer.

Darlows Enigma - Hardy and very fragrant. More of shrub. Single flower form.

City of York - Blooms once.

Hope this helps.

Try Spring Valley Roses. They sell bareroot, own root, hardy roses.
I always have great luck with them.
I ordered 2 Ramblin' Red from them this year.
Mary Lu

Here is a link that might be useful: Spring Valley Roses

America has done beautifully for us. It was my first climber and has me now hooked.

We planted it this year, in late May and it was in the shade. Moved it to a sunnier spot in mid-drought summer. We did however religiously water it twice a day. It has had continuous bloom, 30 flowers at an average, 60+ petals. It continues to have a cluster of roses with beautiful pointed buds blossomming in to roses of at least 3" each.

Just like first parents we have photographed it every weekend.

Will post the pictures in a few.