Ramblers and Scramblers
There are so many ramblers and scramblers to choose from that we are spoilt for choice. If you need to cover an eyesore like an old dead tree or a ruin of a building American Pillar first grown in 1902 would be ideal, although its vibrant pink colour does not appeal to everyone. It flowers in early June and keeps its dense foliage for the rest of the summer. If you favour the purple and lavender shades there are several to be found among the ramblers. One of the oldest ramblers is Laure Davoust first grown in 1843 which has masses of small, double, lilac to lavender flowers in mid-summer. Bleu Magenta (1900) is another purple rambler and the colour of the flower looks wonderful against it dark green foliage.
The rambler Alberic Barbier (1900) has double, creamy-white flowers and rich, glossy, green foliage. Felicite Perpetue (1827) is a vigorous rose but never seems to get out of hand. Its flowers are semi-double to double and pinkish-white. The lovely variety Narrow Water (1883) comes into flower a little later and has a long flowering season.
The rich golden-yellow Easlea's Golden Rambler (1932) deserves to be grown for its large, glossy and healthy leaves. This rambler produces many large flowers during the middle of June.
One of the finest of the scramblers is Paul's Himalayan Musk first grown in the late 19th Century. It looks particulary effective when scrambling through a tree and you can see the pinkish-white, cherry blossom-like flowers tumbling from the tree branches. Just as vigorous but with glossier leaves is Bobby James which has semi-double, creamy-white flowers followed by orange to red-coloured hips in the autumn.
If you are looking for a fragrant scrambler Sir Cedric Morris has single, soft white, almost lemon-coloured flowers. They are very fragrant and are followed by bright red hips that last well into winter. One of my personal favourites is the ancient variety Rambling Rector first grown in the 1500s. It is thorny enough to deter any intruder and has masses of semi-double, creamy-white flowers with a glorious perfume in mid June. The orange-red hips are often around until after Christmas. There is a wonderful example of Rambling Rector on one of the walls at Lismore Castle in Ireland.
Rosa baksiae 'Lutea' (1824) is probably a rambler rather than a scrambler. It is thornless with soft yellow flowers and it is an early rose. It has a beautiful perfume and is very vigorous.
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