I live in zone 5 and two years ago planted High Wire Flyer, a Radler Climbing Rose. I really don’t have a lot of experience with climbers. I purchased a nice trellis that I positioned in my garden (free standing) - mlstake #1. I should have realized it would grow tall when I saw it growing over Will Radler’s garage! Anyway - it is year 2 in my garden - the bush is beautiful!! It has also grown 4-5 feet higher than the trellis - mistake #2 (I kind of got busy on more pressing priorities). So now what do I do?? The bush was fine last year with no winter protection - however - I have these huge canes that are now blowing in the wind! We have only had a few frosts so far. Would you cut it off above the trellis? Wait till next season and do What?? Looking forward to some suggestions!
I am including a picture from earlier this year and the current state!
Not sure I would cut out anything Diane, unless you think the wind blowing against the longer canes might somehow damage the plant. I have at times in the past attached string or twine to long climber canes and pulled them downwards - and tied the other end of the string to a brick or something heavy to hold them in place or even to get them to be horizontal. Good luck!
I also grow Highwire Flyer in my zone 7a rose garden. My climber is now four years old and like yours it has grown past the trellis and is climbing above my garage roof. When I planted Highwire Flyer I put it behind a hydrangea shrub—mistake for sure. But now, they seem to be doing just fine sharing that space. This past summer after the first flush or blooms in the spring, Highwire Flyer grew to 8 feet high and to about 6 feet wide, I worked with my sister Terry Palise to trim it back very aggresively so that it would not fall down and collapse it was so heavy with blooms. After that, I fertilized it and watered it during the hot summer months and it again sent out hundreds of new blooms and grew past the roof of the garage. I love this rose, I love the color, the blooms, and the fact that it is disease resistant. Now in November, it is again huge and it still has blooms on it and lots of hips. We have had several nights of frost here in NJ and a severe drought. No rain in 41 days. But even with all that Highwire Flyer is growing and blooming still. My plan for mine in zone 7a is to trim it back the way I did last summer. I will cut the long canes back about 3-4 feet and the laterals to about 12 inches so that the climber will be able to withstand the winds, snow and ice that is coming. I am confident that this beautful rose will continue to perfrom well and bring gorgeous blooms to my gartden again next spring. Good luck with yours, its a great rose.
You have a few options to choose from when dealing with climbers. If you plan on getting a larger trellis then I would let the tall canes be and wrap the plant up with twine. This will prevent them blowing in the wind, which causes the canes to damage one another making them more susceptible to winter damage. If you are sticking with the trellis you already have, which looks wonderful in bloom. I would cut the really tall canes to about 2-3 feet above the trellis and then wrap the whole plant with twine to prevent wind damage. This will give you plenty of height to cover trellis in spring. If we get a rough winter, you might see some tip die back but you will be prepared by leaving an extra 2-3 feet at the top. For pruning climbers at the Radler rosarium, we cut out all twiggy small growth and spread out the nice healthy thicker canes. Its best to try and tie the canes as horizontal as they can go so you will get more buds from the stems and more flowers. We protect our Highwire flyers here by wrapping them in burlap to prevent any winter damage. We have a lot of tall structures and want the roses to cover them completely. The picture attached shows two Highwire flyers at Will’s garden. We are trying to get the roses to completely cover the outside of trellis and connect on top. Since you are in the area, feel free to reach out to us in spring and possibly stop by to see how we prune our climbers.
Thanks for sharing - High Wire Flyer is a great rose and in many climates! It also did well in the heat of Shreveport in our International Rose Trials - winning best climber. I highly recommend it to anyone looking to add a climber - be sure to give it some space!
