Red and white climbers to cover large South West facing wall

[MarkSurrey]

Hi there,

I think the subject heading pretty much says it all.

We're moving into a large Georgian house in Surrey in the Southern UK and are looking for climbing plants to add summer interest. We're both lovers of roses and would love to have the front wall covered in red and white blooms, but we're not hugely experienced rose growers and would like some tips. The wall in question is South West facing and is about 30 foot high by 40 foot wide.

I've done a bit of research and the roses I had in mind were Mme Alfred Carriere for the off-white bloom, and either Cl Ena Harkness or Etoile de Hollande. We're ideally looking for roses that will cover a large proportion of the wall and have long flowering seasons. We will definitely be planting other types in the rest of the garden.

We would be really grateful for any tips people have as to whether or not these would be good choices, or any other recommendations.

Many thanks for all your help.

Mark

[JPIXI]

Hello Mark,

Welcome to the forum.

It is very good that you have an idea of what you are going to get. The 3 choices you have selected are very suitable and have quite low maintenances. I assume that you have selected them for their perfumes as well.

Ena harknes's is not a very huge climber with slightly scattered leaves unlike étoile de hollande which is more vigorous, group flowers, and delicious leaves. However, the perfume of ena harkness is much stronger.

You can also consider Madame Caroline Testout Climber, Perfume Clouds climber, and Stairway to Heaven Climber. They match well with Madame Alfred Carriere too.

Hope it helps.

Amitié,
Pixi

[MarkSurrey]

Many thanks for that. I did also have scent in mind though, as this is for the front of the house, scent is a nice to have rather than a must have. Scent is much more important in other areas of the garden where we spend more time.

Thanks for the tips too.