When I see Climbing Roses and Ramblers in the catalogs, they all look perfect, and I dream of mine being that picture-perfect. I wish pruning a climbing rose was as easy as pruning the other roses in my garden. Alas, the roses we grow to climb and ramble require extra help to get them to be magazine-worthy.
Pruning a climbing rose is an exercise where you are trying to train a living plant to do something your way. It’s like those times you try to convince a stubborn toddler to walk in one direction when they’re set on going the opposite way. You typically will win, but not without some effort. Today’s featured rose is a Don Juan rose, a climber that I have along the west wall of my garden.
After a couple of seasons we all become comfortable with the process of pruning our hybrid teas and floribundas. Then, we notice we have a climber that keeps growing tall and only produces blooms at the top of its canes. At this point, we start asking questions about how to get this plant to bloom from the top to the bottom of the bush. And what do we do with those branches growing 10-12 feet tall?
Climbing roses and Ramblers both grow tall. The difference is the Ramblers have more pliable canes and are less thorny than the Climbers. Another difference is that Climbing roses will generally bloom throughout the season, while Ramblers usually only flower once during the year.
When dealing with climbers (we’ll include Ramblers in this discussion), you need to recognize that there are two types of canes that need to be trained. Main canes start at the plant’s crown and shoot skyward. The branches off the main canes are called laterals, which produce the plant’s blooms.
Encourage Strong Growth From The Base
The primary emphasis when pruning climbers is to concentrate on selecting and encouraging strong growth from the base of the plant. Secondarily, train the canes to fan out horizontally to promote shoots along the stem. A properly trained climber will produce rose blooms from the top to the bottom of the cane. Sometimes, suppose you have an older climber that is not doing what you want it to do. In that case, you must recondition it by subjecting the plant to some hard pruning back to the crown.
I’ve learned that older roses may have intertwined canes, which makes it difficult to tell which branch you’re working on unless you start from the bottom. Because we are focusing more on training canes than cutting them back, we need to start at the bottom and follow it upward to make decisions about the plant’s structure and health.
Roses Are Resilient
When pruning, please remember not to worry about where you cut a stem. The standard rule is to find a leaf joint and make a sloping cut away from the bud. When removing a main cane, cut it as close to the base as possible. Don’t fret about cutting back too much. Roses are resilient and will quickly create new and more vigorous growth.
Begin By Cutting Away Wild Canes
When you have completed your visual assessment of the rose bush, start by cutting away any cane growing away from the support structure that cannot be tied back. If your climber is congested, cut away more of the weakest growth.
Remove Damaged, Diseased, Dying, or Dead Branches
Next, remove any damaged, diseased, dying, or dead branches. You can identify a healthy cane because it’s firm, green, or brown. If a branch is black or shriveled, it should be removed. Check for crossing canes that are rubbing against each other. Choose to remove one of the branches to prevent a spot for disease to gain a foothold.
Train Your Mains Horizontally
You should then be left with healthy main canes that can be trained. The main branches should be trained horizontally to encourage your plant to produce scores of flowers. If you allow the canes to grow straight up, the only blooms will be at the ends of the canes. Attach your main canes to a supporting structure (trellis, fence) using zip ties or covered wire. Be sure the attachment is loose enough to allow for growth and some movement.
Lateral Branches Should Point Upward
Once you have all the main canes sorted out, it’s time to look at the lateral branches. All laterals should be pointed upward. Branches that point down or out will curl up because they naturally want to grow to a higher level. Prune your lateral branches back to two buds. These will form two branches instead of one and give fullness to your rose bush.
Clean Up When Your Done
When you have finished pruning and securing the mains to the structure, it’s essential to clean the area thoroughly. Don’t leave anything behind that could infect your healthy roses.
Listening to other Consulting Rosarians from my Rose Society, reading printed articles, and watching YouTube videos has helped me do a better job pruning my climbing roses. Still, I’m not quite a virtuoso in my garden. I think the ah-ha moment that removed the mystery of pruning my climbers came when I discovered a 2015 video presentation by Ben Hanna of Heirloom Roses. Immediately after watching his video, I went outside and took on my five climbing rose plants. The result was I learned to like my climbers better, and they treated me to a great show all year. If you’re having trouble with your climbers, I suggest you view Ben’s video on YouTube.
I hope, by now, you’re well into your winter pruning. Our plants need to rest up so they can provide us with fabulous blooms in time for the April Rose Shows. Good luck.
