Training Climbing Roses on a Wall

Why a Sunny Wall Suits Roses So Well

A south- or west-facing wall is one of the kindest places in any British garden. Brick and stone absorb heat during the day and release it slowly into the evening, so the air a few inches from the surface can run several degrees warmer than the open border. That extra warmth ripens the wood, which is exactly what a climbing rose needs if it is to flower freely the following summer. The wall also shelters tender new growth from late frosts and takes the worst of the wind, so stems stay intact rather than being whipped and blackened.

There is one catch worth knowing from the start. A wall creates a rain shadow, and the strip of soil within about 45cm of the base can be bone dry even after a downpour. Roses planted tight against masonry sulk, produce thin growth and shrug off flowering. Plant them out from the wall and lean the stems inwards instead, and you will have a plant that establishes quickly and lives for decades.

Choosing the Right Rose and the Right Wall

Not every rose is suited to wall training. You want a genuine climber, not a shrub that has been talked into it, and you want one whose natural vigour matches the space. A wall rose is trained flat, and any stem that runs sideways will break into flowering sideshoots along its length. This is the single most important principle in the whole business, and it governs everything that follows.

• Climbing roses flower mainly on short sideshoots produced from a permanent framework of older stems.
• Rambling roses are more vigorous, often flowering once in midsummer on long arching growth. They suit a large wall, a shed or a pergola.
• Repeat-flowering climbers are the better choice for a small wall near a door or window, where you want colour from June into autumn.
• Check the aspect: a north-facing wall restricts your choices to a handful of tolerant varieties, so choose accordingly rather than hoping for the best.

A wall of roughly 3 to 4 metres wide will comfortably take one vigorous climber or two modest ones. Buy a plant with two or three strong stems already, and you are a full season ahead of a bare-root single whip.

Fixing Wires Before You Plant

Do the supporting work first, because it is much harder once a rose is in the ground. Traditional vine eyes screwed into the masonry and galvanised wire run between them is still the best system: cheap, discreet and strong, and it holds tension for years.

• Space the horizontal wires about 30 to 40cm apart, starting 45cm above soil level and finishing a little above the height you expect the rose to reach.
• Angle the lowest wires slightly away from the wall so the stems can be tied without crushing them against the brick.
• Use 2mm galvanised wire and a turnbuckle or straining screw at one end so you can tighten it as the rose pulls.
• Tie stems in with soft garden twine, raffia or wide rubber ties, always in a figure-of-eight that loops around the wire and the stem separately. Never bind a stem hard against the wall.

If your wall is old brick or stone, clean the mortar joints and avoid drilling into soft, crumbling material. On painted or rendered walls, a wooden trellis panel fixed on spacers is a good alternative, provided it stands clear of the surface to let air circulate.

Planting and the First Training

Autumn and early winter are the ideal planting times, while the soil is still warm and the plant is dormant. Dig a hole roughly twice the width of the rootball and set the rose so the graft union sits about 5cm below soil level, which encourages it to throw strong basal stems of its own rather than relying on the nursery's.

Now for the training, which is where the flowers are won or lost. Take the longest, pliable stems and bend them down towards horizontal, fanning them out across the wires like the ribs of a fan. A stem tied vertically will grow upwards and flower only at the very top. A stem trained near-horizontal will break into flowering shoots from every bud along its length. Aim for a gentle downward angle, perhaps 20 to 30 degrees off horizontal, and keep the stems evenly spaced so each has light and air.

Do not worry about achieving a perfect framework in the first year. Let the rose grow, tie in what you can, and accept that the shape improves with each season.

Pruning Old Wood After the Blooms Have Faded

The main pruning of a wall-trained climbing rose is done in late summer, straight after flowering, rather than in winter. Cutting at this moment gives the plant time to ripen new growth before the cold and lets you see exactly which wood has done its job.

• Remove one or two of the oldest stems right down to the base, cutting just above a strong new shoot. This is the renewal principle: you are always replacing tired wood with young stems that will carry next year's flowers.
• Shorten the flowering sideshoots back to two or three buds from the main framework.
• Tie in the best new stems to fill any gaps, bending them as horizontally as you can.
• Cut out any weak, crossing, rubbing or dead growth completely, and clear all prunings away from the base.

For a rambler that flowers once, the same logic applies, but be more generous about removing whole old stems each year, as ramblers build up a heavy tangle of dead wood surprisingly quickly.

Feeding, Watering and the Small Details

A wall rose is a long-term resident, so look after the soil around it. Mulch with well-rotted manure or garden compost each spring, keeping the material a hand's width clear of the stems. Water deeply in dry spells, particularly in the first two summers, and remember that the rain shadow means you may need to water when the rest of the border is fine.

Feed with a balanced rose fertiliser in early spring, then switch to a high-potash feed from early summer to encourage flowers rather than leaves. Watch for aphids on soft new tips in May and June, and keep an eye out for blackspot on crowded growth. Good air circulation, achieved by patient tying and thinning, is the best prevention of all.

Tend it a little each month, and a wall rose will reward you for years: a sheet of colour where there was once bare brick.