Based on what I've seen (and smelled) in my area I would try to find 'Etoile de Hollande' somewhere and plant that.

There are climbing sports of several older dark-red or crimson Hybrid Teas. Including the aforementioned Etoile de Hollande, you may find climbing versions of Crimson Glory and Ena Harkness in the US. There are also some "climbers from birth" like Guinee, Orfeo, Rhode Island Red, and Senegal.

One thing to keep in mind as you peruse pics on HelpMeFind is that roses in this color do not come out right with many digital cameras. What looks dark blue-leaning red in real-life often comes out a a hot lipstick-red in a digital pic. So double-check with HelpMeFind for their non-climbing bush-forms to see if color-accurate pics are available.

Of those, I have experience only with 'Orfeo', but I have it growing in an atypical situation -- into a tree. It will really need to put on more size before it does what I want it to do in this situation. But in a more traditional "climber on a sunny wall" or similar site, it should be rather dramatic.

There are also some dark-red and dark-purple clematis which you may wish to investigate, especially if you go with 'Senegal' or 'Guinee', since they don't rebloom much. If you go for one of the large-flowered type-3 clematis and grow it into the rose, you can repeat the dark color after the main flush. After the rose gets to the size you want, a clematis could use it as a trellis. The type-3 clematis would be cut back hard in early Spring, and regrow anew each year. By the time they get started with blooming, the rose would be finished or nearly-so. Check out Brushwood Nursery's website and search for possibilities.

:-)

~Christopher

Thank you Embothrium and Christopher! The Etoile de Hollande is beautiful, and I'm really loving the Senegal too -- both are gorgeous -- just what I had in mind. That is good to know that some roses which appear "red red" in digital photos may actually be darker in real life. I have noticed during my rose searches on the net these past couple of weeks that some roses look strangely day-glo colored in some photos, and have been wondering if that was due to the digital thing, or people's photo enhancing activities on their cell phones, etc. I'll cross-check with photos of the bush form as you suggested.

That's a wonderful idea about filling in with a clematis. Looking now at the rose links you posted and also at the Brushwood site --- haven't been on there for a while. Thanks for reminding me about that place! I got my Rosa setigera from them years ago --- it was fairly large when it arrived and was in good shape. I don't think they sell it anymore, but it was great --- very pretty and cheerful-looking, and just extraordinarily vigorous in the clay soil I had in my old garden. It grew amazingly quickly. The thorns were super long and sharp, so it was a little bit of a challenge to wrangle with, but even so, I do kind of miss it.

Looking forward to new roses for my new garden. Thank you again!

I should have mentioned this before.....

If you want to search for clematis, you can also use HelpMeFind for that -- it's not just for roses. With a paid membership -- $24 per year -- you can do an advanced search for what you want. I mentioned the Brushwood Nursery website because they have quite an extensive inventory, but you'll find even more choices using HelpMeFind to search for clematis.

:-)

~Christopher

Have you thought about Souvenir Du Docteur Jamain?

Scroll down about half way and gasp..... Oh Docteur Jamain. http://forums.gardenweb.com/discussions/1603293/souvenir-du-dr-jamain?n=23

Orfeo from RVR is amazing! I'm looking forward to seeing it bloom this Spring.

In answer to your query " means down to (not up to) minus 20 Celsius/ minus 4 Fahrenheit?" yes :) - its just a difference in phrasing..

HMF is great, but it is dependent on user input ...being addicted to encyclopedias and looking up stuff, I tend to use HMF a lot, just for the pleasure of browsing through it; its possible to search for users in your area,( if they specify it) then you can see what they grow (if they list it) and even send them queries.

From memory you don't get any more information about zones with a paid membership, but there is often a bit more about ancestry (that is if the breeders supplied more info than "seedling x seedling grr) What it is great for is being able to search through categories. You can specify as many as you like...colour, growth habit, height, remontantcy, class , zone, - its great for narrowing down the perfect rose.

I have to confess I'm not currently subscribed ( unemployed so I can't afford to renew membership ) but it was worth it for the use I got out of it, and continue to, and definitely worth it considering I would miss it badly if it wasn't available ! :)

You might also check out other dark Austins like Tess of the d'Ubervilles and Falstaff. These two can stretch taller and climb. I'd recommend grafted to give them a bit more vigor. I grow Souvenir du Dr. Jamain and love his blooms. He doesn't repeat quite as well as the Austins and he can blackspot (and survive), but his color and fragrance are gorgeous! Carol

This is my quest as well. If you like singles, consider Night Owl which looks similar to SW, but apparently less stiff. I'll look through my old posts because I got a few other suggestions that aren't mentioned here.

Christopher and Curdle, thank you for explaining more about how Help Me Find works and the benefit of the Premium subscription. I can see how Premium could come in handy when one has a specific color and habit in mind, and one doesn't want to scroll through 350 pages of roses, even though I've been enjoying looking at all these amazing rose pictures! Now I'm looking at the clematis and peonies --- what a wonderful resource that site is.

mondarda, thank you for the rose recommendations, and also for the tip on Helen Fredholm's photos --- I looked looked at her Instagram and Pinterest photos and they're absolutely stunning. So inspiring!

Thank you vaporvac for the Night Owl suggestion, I have been looking at that one, and portlandmysteryrose thanks for the Austin recommendations -- I was thinking about Falstaff and that's good to know that Austins tend to be more vigorous for you when grafted. Cori Ann, I'm seriously considering the Souvenir du Docteur Jamain too -- thanks for the link with the photo!

So much food for thought. Thanks again everyone!

Montana, DO let Violette seduce you! You will have no regrets in the morning. ;-) Carol

Are Senegal and Souvenir de Docteur Jamain very similar in look? I'm getting the former and wonder if it's worth getting the latter considering how small my garden is.