[NorCA 9b]

LOL. It all started like that for many of us. If you are new to roses/climbing roses, you should check out:

Paul Zimmerman Roses YouTube channel

He is very good at explaining how to take care/grow roses and I like his philosophy "Rose are Plants Too".

If you came across a rose you don't know, you can look up the info at HelpMeFind .

If your rose is "Golden Showers" climbing rose then here is its picture (photo by Heirloom Roses).

{{gwi:244462}}

Additional info from HelpMeFind:

Climber, Large-Flowered Climber.

Yellow. Licorice, tea fragrance. 20 to 30 petals. Average diameter 6". Large bloom form. Blooms in flushes throughout the season.

Height of 10' to 14' (305 to 425 cm). Width of up to 6' (up to 185 cm).

USDA zone 3b through 10b. Shade tolerant. Disease susceptibility: very disease resistant. Can be pruned to maintain a shorter habit.

Have fun with your first climbing rose.

Thanks bboy for the updated info.

This post was edited by bayarea-girl on Thu, Mar 20, 14 at 15:43

Name is Golden Showers, with an 's'. It is quite prone to black spot in my area. The habit is semi-climbing.

so what sort of climbing support does it need? do I need a heavy duty trellis?

I am also going to purchase my first climbing rose soon. Good luck and have fun figuring it all out. Keep us posted on your roses progress. It looks like a beautiful rose, I love yellow.

Just go down to Home Depot or some such store and look over their arches and pillars that are about 8 to 10 ft. tall. Most of them are sturdy enough to handle most climbing roses, but if the arch seems particularly flimsy, just buy a sturdier one.

Or don't use a supporting structure. I grew Golden Showers for years and years with no support. Treated it more like a free-standing rambler. It sprawled out over the back corner of the garden and made quite a showy view when it bloomed.

By the way, I found that my Golden Showers needed more water than most roses do. With regular and extra water, it bloomed and re-bloomed quite well, with only limited amounts of BS problems. However, if I neglected regular generous waterings, it closed down in terms of blooming and sometimes had rather heavy BS problems. In other words, with some regular attention (plus some regular feedings of fertilizer), it does much better in the garden.

Golden Showers is very hardy. Don't worry about it in your zone.

Nearly all roses perform best with 6 hours or more of sunlight. However, there are a limited number of roses--like Golden Showers--that can tolerate more shade--let's say, maybe only 4 hours of sunlight. I did grow mine for a number of years in semi-shade/semi-sun--it grew and bloomed, but the re-bloom was very slow and, even worse, the BS problems doubled. It improved its performance considerably when I got it into more sunlight.

Hope that helps.

Kate

I have a Golden Showers growing up alongside of my house. It definitely wants to climb here - mine is up to the bottom of the third story (about 15-20 feet high). It will rebloom all summer if you deadhead it between flushes. In the Fall, I let it set hips, which are huge and gorgeous. The blooms shatter after about 24 hours, but it makes so many that I don't care.

Jackie

I have made nice structures for some of my climbers with left over cattle panel that I had for some horse fencing. Got some long rebar and hammered in the ground at either end and in between for support then wired the cattle panel to the rebar. Once the rose starts growing, it covers the panel. You can plant other things at the feet of the rose, or put several climbers along the panel. I find my climbers like to spread out horizontally and bloom from lateral branches so put them against fences, or the cattle panel for the most bloom. Lots of good climbers out there - you will want more than one! I grew Golden Showers years ago at another home - it blooms lots, but the blooms don't last long. Still, it is beautiful and you will enjoy it! Mulch it heavily - if you can get some composted horse manure that would be great. I raise horses and find that when I pile a bunch of it on my roses, they love it. Do dig a good hole and put in good soil. If you don't have compost, get some good mulch from Lowes or Home Depot. Mulch will help protect it in winter. And water it well to get it started, and be sure and plant it where it gets plenty of sunlight.

Good luck - know you will enjoy your rose!
Judith

Hey all,

I appreciate all of your answers!!!!!!

First, do you think a chain link fence could support this rose?
and second, can I plant it now or is it too soon?

Yes, a chain link fence would be fine. When it starts putting out very long climbing canes (which might take 2-3 years - be patient!), you can then train them horizontally along the fence.

Regarding when you can plant it, hopefully someone from your zone will respond. Is there danger of snow or freezing temps still where you are?

Jackie

Jackie

Snow, not at all. Our temps at night are staying in the 30s and 40s the next couple weeks according to weather.com
Day time is 60-75

I take it that your GS is in a pot/container of some kind, and is not bareroot? If it is bareroot, soak it in a bucket overnight and plant immediately. If it is in a pot/container, the practice usually is to wait until the last danger of a heavy freeze has gone by and then plant it. In the meantime, put the container next to a southern foundation and water occasionally--and put it in the garage overnight if the nighttime temps fall down to freezing.

I'm in Zone 6 Kansas--our last freeze date is sometime around mid-April, so your last freeze date in Zone 7b might be around April 1 or there-abouts.

Kate

YES..Paul Zimmerman on U tube..he gives the best little lessons. Beware..you must need your main canes first..train them properly as Paul suggests.