Roses for pergolas and arches
Pergolas are outdoor garden features that form a shaded walkway, passageway or seating area, comprising of vertical posts and pillars that usually support cross-beams and a sturdy open lattice. Gardening arches are normally designed as a decorative feature to separate different parts of the garden, often with a lattice of similar support structure to grow a climbing rose or other climbing plant up the sides and maybe over the top of the arch. Both provide a fabulous opportunity to grow climbing roses in a place where you, your family and visitors are likely to pass quite frequently.
You'll normally want to choose a rose of at least medium vigour for a pergola so that it's stems will reach not only directly over the top of the pergola but also spread left to right to provide good coverage and fill the space the pergola affords. Rambling roses may be too vigorous for all except the largest pergolas. For smaller arches, you'll definitely want to avoid the more vigorous climbing and rambling roses, which could overwhelm the structure. In both cases, the best varieties included in this section also have malleable stems to make them easier to train. Pergolas and arches provide an enchanting feature to the garden and ideal stage to show your roses at their best.