Thanks Rebecca. It is helpful to see examples like this. I have been thinking of two clematis there. Although I’m now also considering a Rose along with a smaller clematis variety.

I tend to be very indecisive and then impulsively buy something and squeeze it in. Trying to be more deliberate but then I consider so many options. I’ve been reading lots of old posts about climbing roses in zone 5.

My climbing roses typically die down to the snow line so they each get a trellis to help encourage them to regrow in a more organized shape. I don’t know what you are looking for in a rose but I love my Zepherine Drouhin rose. It blooms late spring with deep pink scented flowers, pretty much stops in the summer when the Japanese beetles are out and about (which is a plus for me), and then blooms more in the fall. It is tolerant of part shade. I haven’t had issues with foliage diseases and it is virtually thornless. I planted clematis to either side of ZD, but each has its own support since ZD doesn’t have stout enough canes to support a clematis on its own. All three still mingle.

You could also look at Westerland (orange) rose or its sport, Autumn Sunset (orange-yellow mix). Three feet deep is most likely OK for the bed, but my ZD grows fairly wide against the trellis which I clip it to before the branches harden and the clematis will also take up space, so you will need some width. Mine take up perhaps 6’-8’ along a wall.

I appreciate the suggestion.

Ive been looking up lots of photos of ZD and it looks lovely. I might have to find a spot for it some place. I bought Westerland locally this spring and I could end up moving it to this spot. I planted it in a less than ideal location. The area in front of the trellis wasn’t free at that time. I finally decided to remove the vine I had there though.

Just browsing around the forums and came across this posting and feel that I can add a few cents to the discussion…. I have over 60 ZDs around the yard. Most I keep running horizontal along the fence or along wires I’ve strung between 4 x 4 posts. The result is a 4 foot high horizontal column of roses that knocks your socks off!! I also have some going upward. Some of the 20 year old ZDs have reached over 16 feet in height. The first 6 - 8 feet have very few blooms while the top is covered.

One thing I’ve noticed with brand new ZD plants is that if you want to train them to go horizontal you must start right from the get-go, bending them very gradually and tying them in the direction you want them to go. The canes become very stiff real quick and will break if bent too far. When they stop bending as you add pressure -- stop, continue after they grow so more.

As far as adding Clematis make sure you get the right class of you will end up with dead vines that are tough to remove.

That's my 2 cents…. cheers, bye

Thanks tool! I looked around the forums and saw some of your photos. Your roses sure are a lovely sight! Makes me want to fence in my yard and have a wall of roses too. I have a lot of deer so if they are out in the open they get eaten down to little nubs. Unfortunately fencing in our yard is unlikely—it has kind of a funky terrain and shape. We’ve thought about it many times but nothing seems as though it would work out very well. Anyways... yes I think I’ll have to find a spot for ZD :)

Being close to you in zones, I can tell you that clematis really like our soil and they can be a lot more enthusiastic than many of our roses. If you get one of the Canadian roses like Alexander Mackenzie or Quadra, you can get any clematis you want and it won't overpower the rose, but both of them might overpower anything but a very sturdy and large arch.

Jackmanii is one of the bigger and more vigorous clematis, so I wouldn't pair it with a rose that would struggle in our climate like ZD unless you planted the rose well in front of it as some color highlight, then had the clematis be the primary show. Be sure to plant the rose well away from the clematis roots because neither one likes to share their water resources, and in our zones the clematis is most likely to win.
Cynthia

I have low-growing reblooming yellow roses together with Jack. Love them all, but turns out they have just a very short time window of blooming together (that was entirely my miscalculation!). So that's one of the things I would suggest you consider in choosing a rose variety...

A lot of the newer clematis seem to be smaller, and might work. Jackmanii is a monster; I'd put him on a much. much bigger trellis all by himself.

I planted Jackmanii with R. hugonis. The rose seems to have eaten the clematis, since I haven't seen it in a couple of years.

Cynthia--thanks for your input. Clematis do seem to do exceptionally well here. I have ended up with several doubled up on obelisks that are really too small and they cascade over into a huge heap, which is lovely when they are blooming and then kind of resemble a green hairy Cousin It the rest of the season. I might try trimming them a bit. I am frequently not sure what to do with them but they seem happy enough.

Eri, you know, I was eyeing the area wondering if I could put a lower rose to the side of the trellis area. Right now I have some bearded iris and geraniums. I am not sure if I am thinking of squeezing too many roses in close together or not.

Barbara--yes Now I am thinking I just need a whole new archway for Jackmanii. :D I do have half an archway available with Blue Angel on one side but Jackmanii might be too vigorous for it. I have been looking out for some smaller clematis to go along a fence too.

mad_gallica -- well, speaking of yellow roses, what a beauty. In searching for R. hugonis, one of your old posts from 2012 with pic came up. SO many great options to choose from.

I ended up seeing a lone John Cabot rose at Lowe's and figured I needed it. I planted it at the base of the trellis. I am worried I may regret this yet at the same time I am excited by the possibility of eventually seeing this area full of cascading flowers. The clematis is still at the far end of the trellis too. I am thinking I might move the clematis to a different spot but right now we have just been hit by some pretty hot temps.

Hi. I‘m starting a small flowerbed on the south side of our townhouse. So far I only have a Morden Campfire rose. I love it but I’m just not sure what color plants would go well with it. I would appreciate any suggestions you could give me. I live in hardiness zone 3. Thanks