Performing ballet style maneuvers on top of a ladder to prune ancient climbing roses isn’t a huge amount of fun on a wintry Ballarat day. After swearing at the spiky Cecil Brunner it occurred to me that maybe these roses didn’t need to be pruned maybe they could just be replaced?
The roses are old and while they still provide great foliage they don’t flower profusely.
We are in the process of painting the house so they will need to be severely pruned already.
Could there be a better performing Rose that provides masses of scented roses that deserves my attention better than these three stragglers?
I could plant three plants one against each pillar of the north facing Californian Bungalow verandah.
I would be so grateful for any suggestions?
(Already feeling better as I am typing this as I’m starting to thaw out 🤣)
Cheers, Penny
Should it stay or go?
Discussion
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I personally love roses over a porch, however maybe in this case I’d remove them completely, paint the house and replant with a rose that flowers more profusely. I like Golden Celebration and Crepescule. Pierre de Ronsard is pretty but has no scent. I’m no expert though!
Yep, I’in the rip out and replace camp,too,Penny. I love Cecile, but as Veronica suggests, one or more of the newer David Austin or Kordes repeat flowering climbers would be a worthy replacement. Maybe you could find a spot for a new Cecile? Love your bungalow!
I have a pergola which I originally covered with a climbing rose. Then I discovered how much better it looked without. I’d have my roses somewhere else if I were you and enjoy the freshened up look of your house.
Old roses can definitely lose their vigour, and unless they flower for 7 months out of 12 may not be worth it. However, there are beautiful pillar roses that would do just that, (Lamarque is fragrant and floriferous) or how about white wisteria? yes, short flowering season and lots of pruning again but such a picture. And not so vigorous and hard too control as the regular one.
I don’t think there is anything wrong with removing this rose as the beautiful house speaks for itself and will be revealed more clearly. However, I would also recommend this RHS pruning video to help improve flowering of the existing climbing roses. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cE0v3NjbabU Enjoy.
Send Harry up the ladder!!!
Nah, but on a serious note – I think that the idea of entering a house beneath a bower of roses is…. a lovely ‘idea’. The reality NEVER lives up to the vision. Get rid of them, and replace with something capable of achieving something closer to peak performance without perfect care
Yes, be brave and take them out Penny, they are past their prime. If you are feeling sentimental about them, perhaps you could prune back hard and move them to another part of the garden. Your lovely house would suit something more structured and formal that looks good year round. Be careful to remove all the old soil if you decide to put in another rose. Love to see the end result good luck.
Cecil Brunner never flowers brilliantly anyway in my opinion, so I’ll back you in getting shot of it as well. You specifically want a rose to replace it? Rose arches always work ‘better’ if they’re able to be left to ‘go wild’ to some extent. I’m not sure they’re suited to a front house entry in that regard. If you do want another rose, I’d go for a pillar rose rather than a rambler or climber. They’re generally less vigorous than the climbers or ramblers so maintenance will be much easier and straightforward for you.
Penny,
Faced the same dilemma. Roses need sunshine, space and lots of uninterrupted sunshine. It was time to remove and plant a white wisteria. Very happy with my decision.
Go for it…….
Robyn
Personally I would get rid of the roses but be careful about what you replace them with. If you are getting a tad older you may not want to be pruning anything that needs you to get up a ladder in the future. How about clematis maybe instead? Good luck.
I think a new adventure in roses on the verandah is called gfor . If it was from someone special or was a present you can always take a cutting(pencil thickness, pencil length) or thinner for Cecil B and find somewhere less prominent for them.
You can remove them and use another that will suit your house. Hopefully, you will give update about your house look .
I agree with Veronica , crepescule is a well behaved climber easily manoeuvred into position, the flowers are sensational and please plant purple around the base! It really is more like a pillar rose in behaviour and easy to maintain a shape