I went to Frederick Meijer Gardens in Bay City, MI last summer and they had clematis growing in their climbing roses. They were gorgeous. I planted them w/my climbers but they are just getting started.

Salvia "May Night" and lambs ear.
{{gwi:289100}}

Purple Veronica, Forget-me-nots which rebloom from spring through autumn here if sheared back after blooming. Apricot and white foxgloves. Sky blue delphiniums.
The veronica will self seed and spread. We grow our foxglove at the edge of our largest rose garden which is partially shaded by decidous trees. Because it's shaded , we grow Hybrid Musk roses there. The foxglove will spread if you amend the soil where you want it to grow to, with coarse sand, about 2 parts sand to 8 parts soil.
Violets are my favorite plants for weed control, although snails do love them, we apply Sluggo every month of the bloom season and a few times in winter.

Luxrosa

Foxglove, iris, baptisia, and Carolina bush pea.

I am trying to mix in a few other things now, but I mainly have daylilies. I tried growing a dwarf gardenia two different times and it died both times. I love the fragrance and would give any thing if I could grow one without killing it.

Laurie

EARLY DAYS
{{gwi:289101}}

AWESOME BLOSSOM
{{gwi:289102}}

JOLYENE NICHOLE
{{gwi:289103}}

PURPLE EYED MAGIC
{{gwi:289104}}

Perennial: 'Marcus' salvia nemerosa
Annual: Petunia

Laurie, those are killer daylilies! Could EARLY DAYS be any more perfect? Isn't JOLYENE NICHOLE great? Mine has been doing so well this year.

Randy

Randy - I almost got rid of EARLY DAYS last year because the first year blooms were not very pretty. I'm glad I kept it.

Laurie

EARLY DAYS - 1st year
{{gwi:289105}}

Wow, what a change from LY.

Randy

The taller white Veronica is stunning when it hides the barelegs of a darker rose behind it. The low blue veronica is stunning in front of the more rounded roses, like Austins.

How close to the actual bush do you companion plant?

Peace,
Jane

What about for full sun areas beside day lilies and clematis? I have a x above ground pool area i am changing to a bed...

I am also very much interested in Jane's question: how close to the actual bush do you plant companions? I assume the companion's roots stay closer to the surface?

- Osteospermum (otherwise known as African daisy)
- Lillies
- Delphiniums
- clematis - dark purple and blue varities.

Check out this site I found in the net -
http://www.hisakoroses.com/

I liked the way how this person uses statute cherub, perennials and clematis together with the roses - looks superb.

Here is a link that might be useful: Hisako's rose garden

Jumbojimmy,

Thank you very much for the provided link, you made my day!
I have never seen so amazingly beautiful photography!
It's just unbeleivable that this gorgeous garden is only a rooftop pot getto.
OMG, I still can't get over the stunning quality of the photos.

I love blue salvia with the roses, as in bean counter's photo. Mine is Blue Enigma and is about 4ft tall -- the hummingbirds love it too!

I love my allysum with roses. The smell is in my opinion the most amazing smell imaginable. The blanket of white around the roses fills in the area and also serves as a mulch. And the smell is like honey, and travels in the breeze. The only downside is that you have to trim it back a lot to keep it from crowding the roses.

Allysum, large flowered purslane, calibrachoa, superwave petunias, trailing vinca (the annual), and dwarf daylilies.

I need to get me one of those Joylene Nicole daylilys. That is gorgeous.

Geranium 'Rozanne' is really terrific!
{{gwi:289106}}