I would recommend you call David Austin Roses at 1-800-328-8893. They are very good at answering those kinds of questions. Make sure you tell them the zone in which you live.

Rebecca

I can't comment on any of the DA roses, though culture and soil fertility can make a big difference with roses as it does with most plants. The very hardy 'John Davis' is often listed as both a large shrub or a climber and mine had always stubbornly remained as a shrub until I had DEEPLY prepared the planting sites and applied copious yearly feedings ... now, they're vigorous and tall bloom throughout the entire summer :)

Depends on climate and genetics, maybe a little on rootstock. For instance, Sally Holmes is a orderly 5 foot shrub in the UK. But in So Cal, it can easily reach 20 feet.

There are a few Austin roses that will remain smaller, or at least not huge, in California and other warm climates. Two I know of are Tamora and The Prince. I have a number of them that get huge here in zone 7, but I don't consider them true climbers, and they stand on their own at up to 9 feet tall. Diane

In 9b, it will likely be a climber. Austins are rated for the UK, so when you look at their sizes, you have to factor in the longer growing seasons and more sun that we have.

I asked the same questions of David Marriott (David Austin Roses PR rose person) several years ago at a gathering at Ashdown Roses.

His answer was very simple: it depends on how they are pruned. Not on different rootstocks or different parts of the country, but on how they are pruned.

I didn't have much luck keeping some of them small. At the Huntington in CA, they keep them lower by trimming them very short in January. Some of the ones that send out long canes will flower like climbers if tied horizontally. Some of mine just won't bloom until they grow long canes. DA roses seem to like cooler temps. In any case, give them plenty of water.

Also could mean that the rose grows 8' canes & if you provide them with a support, they will be an "8' climber" but if no support, they will arch over & form a 4' shrub.

I was going to say what wirosarian said. Depends on how you grow it. A lot of them have long arching canes. If you tie them upright to a trellis, it's a climber. But if you let them grow without a trellis they'll create an arched shrub of about 4 ft. For this method Austin suggests planting 3 in a triangle to get the best affect. That way the planting is more rounded and even on all sides.

It's definitely possible! Most people grow MIP as a 4 foot bush but I train my as a climber

And I keep my Felicia as a 4 foot bush but at a local nursery it is grown as a huge 10 ft climber.

It is all about climate. None of my Austin roses will grow very tall. I've only seen a six foot tall cane on my heritage once after three years of growing it. The only tall Austins so far is L.D. Braithwaite because it is surprisingly more cane hardy in my zone, but it is only 5 feet. Unless Austin develop a cane hardy rose, none will be in colder climates.