I have done it both ways, depending on the tripod. With a wooden tripod it was impossible to extricate the climber without hurting it with all the branches sticking out everywhere. It works while the rose is still small and the variety not too stiff. My best tripods are made of iron by a clever neighbour who is an amateur blacksmith. They are round and stand on four legs, a quadruped, not a tripod, and he made openings on hinges so it's quite easy to remove them for whatever reason. I have two of these but I must talk my neighbour into making at least two more. They are black and go very well with the house with its black gutters and roof ladder.

My husband and I made the wooden tripods ourselves, painted them dark green. It was fun so we have made quite a few. Now we tie the rose to the outside of the tripod, winding the shoots as much as possible round it. The biggest problem is to secure the tripod to the ground.

A third variety is made from rusty iron with narrow openings. All the different types are kept together in separate parts of the garden or it would look too messy.

Another invention by my neighbour is the "spit table" he made. It is a round tray on a narrow iron spit or lever that you push into the ground wherever you need a temporary steady table. We use it by the grill or next to a couple of chairs where we don't need a permanent table. Friends with steeply sloping gardens have ordered tables too. They always stand straight on uneven ground.

I made a few out of 3 pieces of rebar that I spray painted dark green. I got the idea from Robert in VA--hopefully, he'll chime in. They are very simple but seem to work very well.

I planted the roses inside the tee pee. There is plenty of room to get the canes out and wrap them around the tee pee--like a barber pole.

I guess, like mariannese said, it depends on the tee pee and perhaps the rose planted on it. Of course if I knew that a rose was going to have really stiff canes and wouldn't wind around the tee pee, I wouldn't plant it on one.

I can think of a practical reason for planting the rose outside the teepee or pillar. My older climbers needed some rejuvenation--which means I needed to cut 1-2 of the oldest canes back down to the ground (so a new cane would grow there). Only problem was that I had planted my climbers directly under the structures, and it was rather difficult getting in under there to do the pruning. I really wished I had followed the directions of an experienced rosarian who said it is always less of a headache to plant the rose outside the structure. That's the way I would do it now if I were doing it over.

Kate

Also, if you place the structure right over the crown, the first bend of a basal cane around a leg will need to be sharper than if it started from just outside the structure.

My DH Tom makes my structures - four legged obelisks out of copper pipe that have slowly darkened and may even someday go verdigris. Our climate makes that a slow process, but I am looking forward to it. I have a tan house with dark green trim. As as earlier writer pointed out, the color will (then) complement the house.

I place my obelisks directly over the plant. It does make some awkward reaching at pruning time but so far it has not been anything I couldn't handle. I've seen the other placement used, and it works well, too. I just prefer doing it this way.

Rosefolly

When potting climbers on towers when I did that at the beach, it was necessary to place them directly on top of the plants. Occasionally, the variety would be so "enthusiastic", it could lift the obelisk. Didn't happen all the time, but it did every once in a while. Sometimes, you don't have enough room to put it anywhere but squarely on top of the plant. Kim

I think if you have no other practical choice, you place it on top and take your chances.

That said, having done it both ways, it's far simpler OVER TIME to deal with a rose planted in front of the tripod, rather than inside.

Jeri

If it turns out that you don't like the rose, it is easier to dig it up if it's beside the support instead of inside it.

Because it's a huge pain in the @$$ to do anything with the rose if something happens to it or the trellis. I learned that the hard way.