My yard is .20 of an acre with a house in the middle of it (of course,) and a swimming pool in the backyard, and I have a (small) potager style vegetable garden in part of it. My front yard is shaded.

I have visions of growing roses on the fence and allowing them to tumble over. I have visions of growing a rose on a wall of my house, although I was told (by all of you) that my climate isn't well suited for this? Is it true? I have the most perfect, plain wall for this project. It is exposed to the sun all day. When I am looking outward, the wall is facing south. Half of my swimming pool is inaccessible by swimmers, and I can plant there, but the planting area is at its widest, 7 feet wide. So much concrete around a swimming pool, to my eyes, it looks like wasted space. To my children, it looks like "fun."

And I have one triangle of dirt that might be 9 feet on each side. This space needs a statement of some kind, but it can be bumped into by swimmers.

It seems that I might only be able to choose a few roses. :(

I will install arbors to enter both sides of my potager for more roses.

Anyone else have a small amount of space and still able to get their fix?

I feel as though I love just about every rose I see, for one reason or another. How do you narrow them down, especially if you have such limited space? I read all of you and it sounds as though you have 50 - 100 plants. I think that is so amazing!

Nowadays I ask myself, is it worth the very expensive water I have to pour on it? That helps me decide.

For that triangle where swimmers might brush against a rose, the thornless and beautiful Mrs. Dudley Cross might be the perfect answer.

I've tried growing a climber against a wall that gets sun for most of the day, and the lovely Reve d'Or was dying a slow death there, looking worse every year until I had to take it out. Copious watering and mulch didn't help. The canes just fried. I'm sure climbing roses at each side of the potager would look very beautiful, though!

Ingrid

Sherry

P.S. I like Ingrid's suggestion of Mrs Dudley Cross. People really seem to love her. Also, corners of the pool deck could hold a potted rose or two - nothing big, of course. And just think how much less compost you'll have to shovel than the rest of us.

We have climbers all over the cemetery, including a dozen along the Broadway fence and others over arches and structures. I like espaliering roses, training them along a two-dimensional plane. I cut off or tie up any canes that want to grow in the wrong direction.

I knew somebody who grew roses next to her swimming pool. She had a tall fence, and put minis into pots and hung them on it, and massed larger roses into corners in pots on the ground. I know another person who grows Zephirine Drouhin along a fence by her pool - it does ok in Sacramento, although some years it is a poster child for disease. It's thornless, which is a great advantage, and its canes are nice and supple for training. Crepuscule doeesn't have many thorns, either.

In general, I'm an advocate of growing roses vertically. At home, I wrap roses around tall tripods and am able to fit more roses into place, and also have roses espaliered on fences and walls and growing over archways.

I agree that volunteering in the cemetery is great way to get your rose fix without having to grow them all personally at home. After I'd been working there for a few years, my husband said "I finally get it. You get to grow all of those roses in the name of community service!" Yes,indeed. I much prefer to share the roses that I care for rather than growing them in the privacy of my own back yard. My home garden is quite neglected because it's more fun to garden with friends and share it with the public.

I'm in the cemetery most Tuesday and Saturday mornings, if you'd like to come by when I'm there either to help out or to look at the roses with me. Our collection catalog is on our website.
Anita

too, as mentioned, climbers and vertical roses.

i have too many, and know i cram them in, and am constantly repossessing portions of the yard for more. I just scan the yard and see ANYWHERE where i could put one...you might be surprised.

and lucky you, to be in Sacramento. I would definitely volunteer at the cemetery, and i can imagine you would love the people there!! i hope to visit one day!!!

good luck, i feel your pain...any way you can get SOME sun in your front yard?? Any weed trees?? That would be where I would be looking!!

Roses of mannerly growth with long flexible canes can be wrapped around a tripod, obelisk, pole, or any other narrow vertical structure. Don't try this with stiff-caned roses or roses that want to cover a shed. One is too rigid and the other too large. Climbers can be fanned out along the inside of a fence. And of course, if you have an arbor or an arch, send a rose up either side. An older, non-prductive fruit tree can hold up a larger rose as well if you have one of those. Don't try this with a young tree. The rose will overwhelm it.

If you really want to maximize the number of roses in a small garden, think up! And underplant with low-growing perennials and bulbs. There are times of the year when roses aren't doing much, the heat of summer being one. Putting other plants in your garden will give you color while they rest. Consider including plants that bloom in late summer, always a difficult time for roses.

Rosefolly

OK, I have much smaller rose beds than you. I live in a zero lot line planned unit development and still manage to get a bit of my rose fix in.

If you like a bit of the old rose/cabbage rose look, several of the Austins will work well. I have mine against a white fence and they do just fine. In the heat of summer, they may not bloom for a bit but will pick up again and you will have blooms usually until Christmas.

I would put up an arbor or something like that rather than grow straight up against your house. Brother Cadfael has very few thorns and grows upright and tall.

I have a rebar arch that is probably 8 feet across and about 8 feet high. I have Peach Blossom growing on it (yes, it is thorny but it is pretty much constantly in bloom. I also have another rose from Ralph Moore that is finally just starting to come into its own.

Here is Peach Blossom. It is a single to double rose and very pretty. First and last to bloom in my yard.

Here is the Ralph Moore rose whose name I can't recall. ACK! It really is very pretty. It can get up to 15 feet tall and can take our heat. Sorry it is not the best picture in the world and you can tell I needed to do a bit of deadheading.

Sorry, but I cannot find a picture of my Brother Cadfael rose. I would also imagine that several of the other leggy Austins you could probably grow as a climber as well. I had Heritage at one time but lived in an apartment then and only had a 9' by 9' patio so I had to get rid of it as it was HUGE!. BTW, on that patio, I had Austin's Sharifa Asma, Brother Cadfael, Ambridge Rose, Emily Rose, Jude the Obscure (gets huge too), Evelyn (gets huge as well), Peach Blossom, Mary Webb and the following minis--Sequoia, Lavendar Crystal (LOVE that rose), Sweet Chariot and two fig trees all in pots!

So don't let a small space stop you from growing roses. I say go for it. What do you have to lose?

I love the way Brother Cadfael and Jude the Obscure look in your yard! How big are they? Do you prune them back hard to keep them within bounds?

The inspiration given on this thread is amazing! I watched that video and then, clicked on that woman's backyard. She has a pool too! She has one tomato plant, a sad one, and says that's the only non-rose plant in her whole yard! I think I would like companion plants though.

What are some favorite companion perennials that everyone is using for their roses? I tend to use a lot of native, prairie style flowers (echinacea, rudbeckia, lavender, etc) in other areas of my garden, but I feel stumped when it comes to what would compliment the various shapes of a rose plant. How will I know what shape the rose plant will take on when I am planting? Or do you care about that when you are planting the bed? Do you just plant your perennials and let it all come together and it's beautiful anyway?

I am sorry that I am so full of questions. Sometimes I think I should just hire a landscape architect for this backyard of mine, but then that person would rob me of all of my fun. Thank you for your patience. :)

Sea lavender (limonium perezii) love the purple flower spikes, they make babies, great with almost any color of rose

Day lilies (the common golden ones can get too large and I've had to take some out); those I've gotten on-line in purple and other colors don't do that)

Geraniums (pelargonium) bloom almost constantly for me, extremely low-care in my hot and dry climate

Marjoram The bees love it; will get very large, just one or two accent plants are all you'll need, you'll find a few babies here and there

Repeating irises - these are great, make sure you choose complimentary colors, mine can repeat at any time (now for instance) their shape is a great compliment to roses, very low care in my garden

dwarf crape myrtle - not the bright pink one, but white, lavender and purple are great colors with roses

lavender plants - look beautiful with roses, you can't go wrong with them

Ingrid

Probably can't call camellias "companion" plants, but awesome rose alternates for shade. For me my favorite companions are the ones that do the best for me in my climate. Since you're in the sacramento area, our climates are likely very similar.

My favorites and easiest are Dahlias, Geraniums, Canna Lilies, Mums, and Succulents. Irises are still new from last year, so hoping to get blooms this year, planting lots of gladiolous this year because I absolutely LOVE the look of them even though they are so short lived.. Daylilies still relatively new for me.

Also trying poppies this year, and needed some spring color so added Tulips, Hyacinth, and Daffodils. Hollyhocks, Jasmine and Honeysuckle for backgrounds/height with the vines on trellises. And put in 4 clematis last year, thought I killed all of them, but they're all getting growth on them this spring.

I