Climbing roses don't really "climb" in the sense that vines climb up supports. Rather, these are roses that develop very long canes that may be trained over trellises or up walls as long as they are attached in some way by we humans. Left unattended, they would merely arch over and touch the ground at the tips.

There are many cultivars of climbing roses that have all manner of flower types including hybrid teas, floribundas and ever-bloomers.

As a rule, climbing roses may be divided into two categories:

Large Flowered Climbers

This category has thick, rigid canes that may stand on their own up to a height of 10 feet or so. They need to be tied in some manner to pillars or posts so that they do not snap off in the wind. That is one reason they are often called pillar roses.

It takes a couple of years before these plants start to bloom. They produce large flowers in large clusters. Most cultivars bloom in early summer and then repeat in autumn. There are climbing types of hybrid tea, polyantha and miniature roses.

Rambler Roses

These are climbers that produce long, thin and flexible canes. The canes can be up to 20 feet in length and bear clusters of flowers less than 2 inches in diameter. They bloom only in the early to mid summer but produce a very large number of flowers at that time. The flowers are in colors ranging from red to pale pink, white to yellow. Ramblers tend to be very hardy but may be susceptible to powdery mildew in humid environments.