Both of the roses you have selected bloom only in the spring. Is that what you want and neither is all that that shade tolerant. They are both white and will--I think--look washed out against your house color. PHM is also very thorny and might not be the best choice for a porch. Take a look at Zephirine Drouhin. She repeats, is fragrant, is shade tolerant and almost thornless.

That's weird, I read that alba roses in general are fairly shade tolerant?

In any event, I have been trying to sift through the different classes of roses. It's difficult to say the least!

The only real requirements for that spot are shade tolerance and a climber/rambler. I can tolerate white, but as you said, would prefer at least pink or blush, something with a hue of pink, at least. Thorns are not a huge issue as we don't use the porch much and the rose will be trained on the outside of the porch as opposed to inside.

I'm pretty open to all the possibilities out there, just need your guys help here. I was set on an alba but maybe not....

I will keep Zephirine on my list i'm forming on my computer. Very, very pretty!!!!

The only thing, other than it being a climber and shade tolerant, that I insist on, is no hybrid teas or anything like that! Old fashioned all the way for me. I have a grandiflora and a hybrid tea climber already. I also have a fairy rose. Time to branch out.

PH Musk is a house eater of a rose so you may not want to try and have to deal with it growing 40 feet over your house. Madame Plantier is very shade tolerant for me but I'm in CA with a very long growing season which is a factor to consider.

Narrow Water is a shade tolerant pink reblooming Noisette to consider. Baltimore Belle is a pink rambler (once blooming.

Catsrose, do you have experience with ZD being shade tolerant. I've read ZD isn't as shade tolerant as has been suggested.

Diane

Ah, no 40 foot vines for me. It will be hard enough to contain the dutchman's pipe :).

What is a Noisette? And are there any climbing albas that are a pinkish color? Once blooming is fine for me. and of course vigorous vines are important so i can train it up that column.

I love all of your ideas and I look forward to more. I want this to be just right...near perfect!

I grow Paul's Himalayan Musk on the North Wall and it does there just fine. It also is not white, but blush pink, it gives me about 3 weeks of breath taking show each year. He is a big rose however, also he gets very long lateral canes (side branches), which probably would be nightmare to secure on the porch. It also has very annoying small prickles, that tend to catch your clothing each time you come close to it, so I would not plant him where you plan to walk a lot.

Zephirine Drouhin on the other hand is almost thornless, but it is very prone to disease and generally is not all that shade tolerant, also it needs heat to really do well.

I would agree about Narrow Water, I grow it too and so far it is very good rose, growing moderately, not all that thorny and has lovely small light pink blooms. The blooms are similar size as PHM. It also is repeat bloomer and very healthy.

Then there also are various wichurana climbers, best known of them probably is New Dawn, which gives lovely light pink blooms in a few flushes over the year. It is reasonably thorny, but manageable, also it is very healthy.

Then there are setigera climbers, like for example Long John Silver or Baltimore Belle, which also bloom once, but are a bit better manageable, also healthy and hardy.

Albas generally are big shrubs rather than climbers, they probably would reach your railing, but would not climb all the way up. Also, albas are once blooming, very healthy, but while some people praise their fragrance, I for one, can't smell their fragrance at all.

If you would consider large shrub, there also are a lot of other hybrid musks, which eventually will become huge bushes and they repeat. Among my favorites would be Felicia, Cornelia, Ghislaine de Feligonde (very lovely one), Buff Beauty, Nur Mahal. Ghislaine de Feligonde is a bit bigger from this bunch, so she probably even would climb for you up to the roof.

Then there are Lens hybrid musks, from which Plaisanterie is rather interesting and might look well for that place - it is also a high shrub, but I like it a lot, reminds me a wild rose. It is a bit on the thorny side though.

Then there are wild roses to be considered, for example Ayrshire Splendens, Father Hugo's Rose.

Also, if you would consider red, I am very fond on Paul's Scarlet climber. I grow it also on the North Wall and it has very bright, huge clusters of red blooms, quite old fashioned looking.

With only 2-4 hours of sun however I would seriously consider if the rose is a best choice for that place. My choice would be New Dawn in your situation.

I think you should browse through Vintage Garden's list of large flowered climbers. The site has good descriptions and pictures of many. Awakening, the beautiful sport of New Dawn would look well on your porch. A little known cultivar which has large, dark pink, old-fashoined formed blooms, and excellent repeat, is Cherryade. It was introduced by a Dutch breeder and should be hardy for you. You might like to look at some of the beautiful and hardy climbers from Kordes, such as Rosanna and Rosarium Uetersen. I think you don't need to settle for a once blooming climber when there are so many excellent repeat blooming choices.

Paul's Himalayan Musk is massive and usually grown into trees. Albas can be trained to climb, but I think they have a natural stately elegance when grown as free standing shrubs. Albas, IMHO, are at their best used as hedgerow plants. They are so extraordinarily healthy that vines, even smothering morning glories, can be draped over them with the alba plants showing little or no ill effects.

If you are thinking of ordering from Rogue Valley, you might ask Mrs. Ineda for a recommendation. I have spoken with her by phone; she is gracious, helpful and very knowledgeable about growing roses.

Well, I would also consider New Dawn or Awakening. While you are at it, you could easily pop a clematis in with a rose which would increase the interest period and many clems prefer a deal of shade to prevent fading. Look for any of the viticellas or texensis varieties. A vigorous winner id Jackmanni superbe or Polish Spirit.

You might give Connie, at Hartford Roses in Fredericksburg, VA a call and see what she recommends. She is closest to you and has a good selection of climbers.

I am beginning to hate New Dawn. She is thorny and stiff. I'm a landscaper and I have a half a dozen clients try to use her on porches and arbors. She gets way out of control too fast and I'm always chopping at her to keep her in line. Overnight she will put out an 8' cane that will take your eye out as you walk thru the front door. To me, any rose/plant you have to constantly prune to fit a space is the wrong plant for that space. She is very disease resistant, grows quickly, repeats bloom and is consequently over-used.

I'm not sure you can grow [very many] noisettes in PA. They are not very winter hardy. Hybrid Musks are a little hardier, but even those you would have to select carefully.

You could also use Hybrid Perpetuals, which will easily get tall enough to cover the railing.

Yes, I grow ZD in partial shade and yes she is fairly blackspot prone.

I love all your suggestions! After carefully reading your entries, I have narrowed it down to Paul's Scarlet, Awakening, New Dawn, and Narrow Water.

Which ones would be a "classical climber", i.e., not turn into a shrub? There are already the small shrubs there and I'd like to keep them, but not essential.

I'm so excited!

Should I order from rogevalley or heirloom roses this week or shoudl I wait until spring?

Noisettes need a warmer climate than you have, so skip noisettes.

I personally don't like New Dawn either, and it is also a BIG plant. You probably want a more moderate climber.

While I love roses, I'm not sure a rose is actually what would suit your site. 4-6 hours of sun is fine for many roses, but 2-4 would simply not be enough for a healthy rose. It might live, but it wouldn't flower much. That actually is an argument for a BIG rose -- that it might outgrow the oak and reach some sun.

Rosefolly

Actually Noisettes have proven to be more cold hardy than previously thought. We had some discussion about this last year after a particullarly brutal winter. Many of them can take Zone 6. They are clean and of course rebloom and can take the shade. If you give them support most will climb very nicely but they do have thorns. Pickering grows narrow Water so it ought to do just fine. I have it and it came through my extreme winter with no damage at all.

patricia

If you are in zone 6a, you're even colder than my garden and I can't grow Noisettes here with a few exceptions.

Cornelia and ZD would be good choices for part-shade and rebloom, but both are prone to blackspot without spraying and will defoliate considerably. Darlow's Enigma is my most shade tolerant rose and very healthy, but it is too bushy for what you want to do.

Alba roses such as Great Maiden's Blush or Konigen Von Danemark will get big enough to climb and are healthy, but will only bloom once. These are pink ones because I agree with the comments that a white bloom will not show up as well against your house so pink would be better for contrast.

New Dawn or Awakening are healthy and shade-tolerant, with reliable repeat when established, but are quite thorny and stiff to train and very vigorous. Baltimore Belle is better to work with, but will appear white (not pink) and there is no rebloom.

You should consider removing the oak tree now while it is young and the cost is cheaper if you want to preserve the sun to keep your roses blooming... otherwise they will not like getting just 2-4 hours of sun in the future.

Here is a picture of the street with all the giant trees on it. I show this because people on my side of the street (the east facing side, to the right) have some climbing roses. So I might be underestimating the future light available, now that I think about it. Especially considering everyone else has sweetgums, and oak will tend to cast a lighter shade than the sweetgums:
{{gwi:40441}}From Trees

Also: I Don't know how obvious it is in the first picture I posted, but fortunately, there is a walkout second-level porch above the main porch. So I would be able to get a larger climber because i can train it on there without having to climb onto a roof! It will provide considerable flexibility for me when training a climbing rose around the porch and up onto the top railings. 10-15' may be too short, but 40'+ is too big! LOL.

I would suggest Veilchenblau or, if you want smaller climber Exelenze von Schubert(sp?)
They will look beautiful with your house. Veichenblau is spectacular in spring, but does not repeat. EvS has some repeat, but it is nothing to write home about. Mostly one good flush in spring.
olga

I would suggest Veilchenblau or, if you want smaller climber, Exelenze von Schubert(sp?)
They will look beautiful with your house. Veichenblau is spectacular in spring, but does not repeat. EvS has some repeat, but it is nothing to write home about. Mostly one good flush in spring.
olga

Considering that oaks generally are slow to grow, I would think that you should not worry about the light that much for now, it will come to play probably in 20 years from now, so in any case you will get quite some enjoyment out of it.

Purple roses like Veilchenblau could indeed be nice for you, either Veilchen itself, either some repeating offspring, like Purple Skyliner or Perennial Blue. There also is Himmelsauge, but he is a bit shruby.

You might also want to look at Lavender Lassie, it also is a good repeating rose, is quite hardy and should do well in part shade.

Or the star of cold climates, John Cabot, might also do well there, he has a bit of Alba/rugosa kind of look.

I just went to the Rogue Valley Roses site and found Celestial a very beautiful Alba that grows to a well behaved 6 feet, very fragrant and a light pink. It's a once bloomer and according to the owner of Rogue Valley Roses, she's never met an Alba that she didn't like. I think this Celestial will be on my must buy list for 2011.