Oh, I would so put a climbing rose!!! One of the older varieties with heavy perfume, I was talking in another posting with Lavender lass, I believe, about alba roses. That would be the ultimate romantic!!!!

Also, I love bulldogs. How cute. Doggies can sure make a mess sometimes, though, especially in the garden. They have no concept of garden and grass and the difference!

Can we see a picture of the arbour please? Given our experience with trying to control New Dawn, we're sticking to thornless things this time! Clematis for sure; maybe honeysuckle, but maybe not...

I had a gorgeous very large arbor in New Orleans with cl. pinkie roses, one on each side. You could mix a purple or white clematis in there too.

Lilyfinch- Roses and clematis together are wonderful! If I was in zone 6 (and no deer in my yard) I would find a beautiful, fragrant...and thornless rose and let it cover the arbor. If it rebloomed, even better, if not, you still have the clematis :)

Zephirine Drouhin would be my first choice, but we have different climates and I've heard ZD can be prone to blackspot. You might want to ask for advice on the rose forums, too.

If you want a paler pink rose, there's a sport of ZD called Kathleen Harrop that's really pretty...and still thornless. It would be beautiful with a purple clematis!

Here is a link that might be useful: Kathleen Harrop

I thought about Climbing Pinkie for mine, but wanted something pretty much evergreen. Louisianagal, did you ever have a problem with black spot? I've read that Pinkie's disease resistance isn't foolproof.

I have Sweet Autumn clematis growing on my arbor. This year I added Mexican Flame vine, but it hasn't put out much growth yet.

I am disappointed that New Dawn isn't the choice. I just moved to house from an apartment and have dreamed of having an arbor with a New Dawn. Tell me about your experience please...

I love New Dawn too. It is however a vigorous climber and so be prepared for that.

I like the idea of mixing in a rose climber or rambler with clematis. You can mix in many kinds of clematis with different bloom periods so you can enjoy blooms all season long.

On a recent walk-about I encountered a pink hybrid tea type rose climber against an off white Victorian Gingerbread style home. Quite pretty and I think the paint job was totally appropriate. It wasn't zinc white which can be too jarring. It certainly came off cool.

If I had an arbor, I would cover it in wisteria. So romantic!

we're building an arbor next year and i want to try red trumpet honeysuckle. honeysuckle does well here...and it will be next to a hummingbird feeder...hopefully they'll like it too.

New Dawn is very pretty and a hardy rose, but it also has a lot of thorns. I was going to get a couple, until I saw Woodyoak's thread and decided against them. In the right place, they're beautiful, but not something I'd want to have too close to a walkway or seating area. Besides, in zone 6, you have so many more choices than we do in zone 4 :)

Am looking forward to the day I've got an arbor. Mine will be in partial shade, so our choices are limited.

There is a lot of clematis and roses, but perhaps an unusual color pairing of each to switch things up? Are there other flowers or plantings in close proximity that would affect your choice?

(sorry, not very useful suggestions, I know)

Heres a pic of the arbor, please excuse the mess around it! I shouldnt have used a paint sprayer, the overspray sprayed further than my tarp covered so then i gave up protecting the grass.

I appriciate all the ideas! my first instinct is to use roses as well. But this year ive had the worst luck with blackspot. Im starting to doubt my rose abilities, unless its bulletproof like a Knockout. I have a couple roses doing just ok.

I have goldflame honeysuckle on a chain link fence that i enjoy, as well as the hummingbirds! I never noticed a scent on it till the flowers were a couple weeks old. Its lovely!

So the idea in the back of my mind is to use 3 plants of Blue moon Wisteria. One for the far end of the fence and twine it across the top of the pickets, and then 2 for the arbor. I thought id use a complementing clematis as well.There is an amazing pic of blue moon on a arbor in the vines forum.

i llove all the ideas you gave me! I hope the arbor pic helps. If anyone has any rose growing tips thatll give me the confidence to put them on the arbor, it sure would help!
Im so glad i got a laptop again and can rely on youall for the best ideas and inspiration!

{{gwi:734405}}

I don't know anything about them but I'm just gonna throw it out there - what about a climing hydrangea?

To me, I'd try my hardest to find a repeat-blooming climing rose of some sort, there are so many! that to me says "romance". I love wisteriea too, but the bloom period can be very short (at least it was here this year).

Unless Blue Moon is a very wimpy plant, I don't think that arbour and fence look strong enough to support a wisteria. I'd be inclined to stick with lighter weight vines like clematises and maybe some annual vines. Is there a garden behind the fence that you are coordinating with or will the vines on the fence and arbour be a stand-alone feature?

I have to agree with woodyoak, my friend has a Blue Moon wisteria and it completely pulled down a chain link fence and the frame from a pressure treated wood playset she thought would be a great structure to cover.

If I had an arbor, I think I would use a mix of clematis and sweet autumn clematis so that I would have an extended bloom time.

Carol

Lilyfinch- Don't forget to make sure whatever you plant is non-toxic for your little guy (bulldog).

Check out this website for more information. While some things may be toxic, if they're planted in an area not accessible by your dog, it should be okay. If you go to the ASPCA website, you'll get more info on each plant. Some may only cause a tummy ache for your pet, while others can be deadly.

While I do use a few plants on the toxic list, they are mildly toxic and not deadly. I do have a few clematis, but not lily of the valley or sweet peas. Roses are safe around animals and children, so although the deer like to eat them, I have a lot of them in my garden...mostly hidden behind other plants :)

Whatever you decide on, I'm sure it will be beautiful.

Here is a link that might be useful: Toxic/Non-Toxic Plant List for Dogs

Wow, i had no idea blue moon wisteria would be destructive. Its an american wisteria, not crazy like the asian variety, but i guess in the end its still a wisteria! i hadnt read anything negative about it, so i assumed it was safe. I certainly dont want to destroy the fence and arbor my husband put up for me!
I do like that kathleen harrop rose. One reason i didnt decide on zepherine drohin is its bright color. I like the pale pink against the white.
I guess im kinda stuck now, i did read that the knockout rose collection has a climber, maybe thatll be a carefree rose.
LL,since you know so much about roses, do you know of any that wont get blackspot? Or can they all get it?
I;ll have to let you all know what i end up with! The pressures on!

Lilyfinch,

Every time I see your topic I have to grin. It reminds me of a now famous quote from a movie:

"And this one time, at Band Camp..."

And seems like she also said :

"And I had this one friend, at Band Camp..."

--------------------------------------------------
I hope you find your dream vines for your beautiful arbor.

~Annie

Lilyfinch- I don't know much about blackspot, since I don't think I've ever had it on my roses. I know it can be a problem in some parts of the country. I recommend you go to the rose or antique rose forum and ask those rose growers for some suggestions. A lot of them have much more experience than I do concerning roses. I've been doing a lot of research on roses for a while now (trying to decide which ones would work best in my space) but my roses are still pretty small :)

You could try "Queen of Denmark" also known as "King of Denmark." This is a beautiful old rose that blooms like crazy, once established, for about a month. The smell is awesome, just like you'd expect from an antique rose, and the flower itself is exceptional. I need to build an arbor for mine because its canes are so long, I'd say about 8 to 12 feet! It does get blackspot, but you can hit it with miracid or neem.

I've had incredible luck with an antique rose dealer out of Ontario, but I can't come up with the name of the place! They have a really good catalogue with excellent descriptions. They ship in November, so the roses are dormant when you get them. Good luck.

Here is a link that might be useful: alba rose

lilyfinch, Jeanne LaJoie is alovely climbing miniature rose that is winter hardy. It can get to 7ft. in OH, and has lovely 1' full pink blooms.I don't yet have it so I don't know about thorns.

Here is a link that might be useful: Jeanne LaJoie

When I got my arbor, I had originally hoped to do climbing roses plus a clematis, but I decided maybe it wasn't sturdy enough. So, right now it has one clematis.

I would also want a very wide arbor if I had a thorny rose, I think, so I wouldn't have to worry about people getting caught on the thorns.