Carol has already launched threads where people can post photos of their Gallicas and of their other, mostly once-flowering old roses. I thought there might be room for a post on ramblers. Ramblers are, broadly speaking, climbing roses, generally of hefty dimensions, largely once-blooming, often but certainly not always small-flowered, and generally showing a visible relationship with their species ancestors. Challenges to this definition are welcome: it's just to give an idea of what I have in mind.

I didn't systematically photograph my own ramblers this year, having the shrub roses more on my mind, but I did take some photos, and they follow.

'Ayrshire Splendens' partly on its pergola and rambling through the hedges lining the ditch.

R. helenae helping tear down the shed. Giving these whopping roses adequate support is no joke, and a problem I haven't found a solution for.

This may be 'Aidelaide d'Orleans', I'm not sure. Certainly an Ayrshire, seen here trained onto a pergola. The Ayrshires are a group of ramblers hybridized from R. arvensis, possibly with input from another European species, R. sempervirens. Rosa arvensis grows wild locally, a trailing white-flowered species flowering a little later than the dog rose. The Ayrshires grow well here, not surprisingly. Like their species parent they have slender flexible growth. I have several different kinds but can never sort them out.

'Brenda Colvin' growing up a dead locust and conifer. Thought to be an offspring of 'Kiftsgate', and huge enough. This one is probably about twelve years old and strikes me as having plenty of growing to do yet.

'Alberic Barbier', a large-flowered Wichuriana rambler. This one is seen here and there locally. Very easy to root and beautiful. It gets big, though, and is thorny. An excellent rose for growing through a medium-sized sturdy tree.

'Alberic Barbier' again, growing in its jungle down in the shade garden. It has the hedge to live in, but is leapfrogging, with my encouragement, into the line of flowering ashes growing above the hedge.

Will do for now. I hope to see photos from others who grow ramblers!