How to Grow Vining Roses

Vining roses are trained to cover a variety of support structures.

Growing against the side of the house, a stone wall or an independent support structure, vining roses (Rosa spp.) make a big statement in the landscape. Their flowers are every bit as beautiful and fragrant as roses growing on bushes. Choose varieties suitable for your climate and location for the best results and the most flowers. Vining roses are not true vines; they are merely varieties of roses that grow extra-long canes. Left to grow on their own, these canes scramble along the ground.

Things You'll Need

• Support structure
• Peat moss
• Compost
• Garden shovel or rototiller
• Garden rake
• Granulated rose food
• Rose pruners
• Raffia or cotton strips or wire twist ties, 1-inch by 12-inch
• Organic mulch

Instructions

1. Construct a trellis, obelisk or arbor for a vining rose. Choose a spot situated in full sun with rich, fertile and moist, but well-drained soil. Ensure the support structure is at least 5 to 6 feet high.

2. Improve the soil at the planting site. Spread up to 6 inches of peat moss on the surface of the growing bed, along with 2 to 3 inches of compost. Incorporate these amendments by turning over the soil with a garden shovel or rototilling. Rake the soil smooth when finished cultivating.

3. Dig a hole twice as wide as the root system and slightly deeper. Add 2 tbsp. of granulated rose fertilizer to the bottom of the planting hole.

4. Form a cone of soil in the hole, using your hands. Center the crown of the rose atop the summit of the cone. Arrange the roots, evenly spaced, around the perimeter of the cone.

5. Add a few shovelfuls of the improved soil you removed from the hole. Firm it gently with your hands around the roots, eliminating all air pockets.

6. Fill the partially filled planting hole with water, and allow it to drain completely before proceeding.

7. Fill the hole the rest of the way with soil, ensuring the crown of the rose grows at the same level it was previously growing. Look for a slight difference in the color of the bark to determine that point.

8. Water the newly planted rose thoroughly after planting. Provide it with the equivalent of 1 1/2 to 2 inches of rainfall per week throughout the growing season.

9. Fertilize vining roses every six weeks throughout the growing season, with the last feeding occurring in mid-August. Scatter the granulated rose food in a circle around the plant, extending out to its drip line. Avoid getting the granules on the crown of the plant itself.

10. Prune vining roses in early spring each year. Remove all dead or diseased canes, cutting back to healthy wood. Remove canes growing toward the center of the rose.

11. Tie the canes of the vining rose to the support structure as they grow. Use pieces of raffia, strips of cotton fabric or covered wire twist ties to secure the canes to the trellis. Tie them loosely, so they don't cut into the canes as they grow larger.

12. Remove the spent flowers promptly, to encourage the production of more blossoms.

13. Mulch the base of the vining rose during winter, by putting down a 4- to 6-inch protective winter mulch of hay, straw or autumn leaves.

References

• Purdue University Extension; Roses; B. Rosie Lerner, et al.; 2003
• Washington State University Extension; Climbing Roses; Milo Ball; 2005