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| Some exotic climbing roses |
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The romance of these beauties can't be overestimated. They lend their natural charm to everything they touch. A window wreathed in roses sends perfume floating indoors. Garlanded pillars call out to passersby. And what could be more inviting on a summer day than a shady garden seat under a scented canopy.
 Climbing roses come in all sizes, colours and flower shapes. But they share a common characteristic which are the long limbs that may either arch, or grow upright as the case may be. Since they are trained up a support - a fence, a wall, a trellis - they require relatively little ground space, especially considering the heights many of them reach. You are bound to have room for one, but do take into account the eventual width. A climbing rose can cover quite a large area when fanned out to be as wide as it is tall. Flowering proliferates on canes that grow horizontally because they receive more sun; otherwise, canes reach straight for heaven with blooms only on top. A little training, light pruning and a spring feed with a slow-release rose fertiliser are all these social climbers ask.
The most popular large-flowered climber is one called 'New Dawn'. Popular in the United States of America, if offered a sun-drenched wall to scramble up, it showers the gardener with 2 to 3 inch blush-pink flowers tasseled with golden stamens. Stand nearby and you'll enjoy the delicious perfume - a strong apple scent. A robust, upright climber, 'New Dawn' can easily reach 20 feet, and often does. Once the first flowering of the season is over, then 'New Dawn' rests, quietly blooming off and on throughout the rest of the summer and into the cool of the fall, her scattered blooms contrasting beautifully with dark glossy foliage.
'Zephirine Drouhin' is a Bourbon rose that combines the best qualities of the old roses with the more recent development of repeat bloom. She opens with high-centred, semi-double, hot-pink flowers on burgundy-coloured canes. Each is 2 to 4 inches across with 15 to 20 petals in each bloom. The flowers are the largest in late spring and early summer, and smaller in size later in the season. But whatever the size of the blossoms, all are generous with the perfume they waft on the breeze. An almost thornless climber, it has been known to bloom in only three hours of direct sun a day. Another plus: she is hardy to 10 below zero. New leaves are a coppery purple that age to a dark green colour, a perfect foil for the flowers in early summer. She reaches a height of 15 feet and can easily grow into a small tree.
Rosa 'Dortmund' has an unblinking eye - a white circle gilded with a gold stamen- peeking out from a brilliant poppy-red, single bloom. As if that isn't showy enough, the six to eight wavy petals are cupped, heightening the overall effect. They bloom in large clusters and exude a subtle, spicy scent. In fall, medium-size glossy orange tips form and stay to both decorate the canes and feed the birds in winter.
'Dortmund' is hardy. One caution, though: It tends to get off to a slow start, digging in its heels before climbing. So sit back and relax; you won't need to prune at all until it has filled in the area you've chosen. Once established, it can send out shoots from its base that climb to 12 feet in one season.
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