Does it bloom all season off and on,or is it once blooming?
A couple of old red climbers are Paul's Scarlett Climber. This variety blooms only one time a year. It is a cherry red color, and a heavy bloomer. Then someone took that rose and made it everblooming. This variety is called Blaze, or Improved Blaze. How old is the mother plant? Paul's Scarlett
goes back to the 50'sor60's Blaze a few years later I think.
I hope this helps.

It reblooms. It doesn't look like Blaze to me (a friend grows it). I don't know how old the mother plant is - I lost all the records of the trade so I can't ask.

Thank you for your assistance!

A couple questions: Does the color show up correctly here and do the bloom clusters remind you of hydrangea?

I ask because those red clusters, the shape of the blooms and the growth habit you describe remind me of a mystery rose here that we finally decided was either Skyrocket or Will Scarlet.

Robin Hood?

I just looked at the foliage and wonder if it is Scarlet Meilland.

That is exactly what I thought Patricia when I looked at the picture.....reminds me of Scarlet Meidiland.
Michael

I've been looking at Scarlet Meidiland, and while the blooms are similar, the sprays appear to be more open on Scarlet Meidiland... and then there's the size issue - this monster of mine wants to be a whole lot bigger that the descriptions of Scarlet Meidiland I've just been reading. Is this a situation like so many of the Austins, where they routinely grow much larger than the descriptions? Maybe mine's a Scarlet Meidiland on sterioids? :-)

Here's another photo. It does look quite a bit like 'Scarlet Meidiland', except for those octopus canes...

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Scarlet Meidiland can be absolutely mammoth. I had a neighbor with one that was probably 10' high and as wide with sprawling arching canes.

Jean

I have a Scarlet Meidiland over 12' tall and trained up a trellis. Sometimes the descriptions just don't match how they grow in the real world. (ie. see Austin Roses).
Michael

Well, it looks like one of my "mysteries" may have been solved. Thank you so much!