Thank you for all your kind comments, but I can tell you, it has everything to do with the plant and not the planter. I took a small branch from AP one spring and stuck it in the ground about 15-20 feet away from an oak tree. During rainy nights that winter, my "sensor" lights would come on and I could see through the wind and rain that young AP rooting which was now about 20 feet swinging toward that tree as I sat wondering when the rains and thunder would cease but AP was not giving up. It only gave up the following spring when I dug it up and gave it to my DIL for a tree where she wanted that rose to grow. Five years later it is all up in her oak tree.

Jay -- I've usually seen 'Gloire des Rosomanes' grown as a BUSH. The canes seem to me not to be lax enough for winding on a pillar. Setzer Noisette will definitely grow as a pillar rose, but it is itself dense enough that I don't see it "sharing" well with another rose. I have it in mind to do this myself, with perhaps Cl. Cramoisi Superieur and Purple Skyliner. DH is not enchanted with the idea, but I'm hopeful. Below see "Setzer Noisette" on an arbor. (It may not be in commerce.) Jeri

Wondering what a nice deep rich brown color would go good on cedar outdoor pillars.

To add to that aesthetic… if those steps are concrete… you could stain them instead of using carpet…much easier than strapping yourself with the chore of vacuuming… if the surface is slippery … a non slip coating can be applied or there are lots of modern stair step pads that can add an interesting simple pattern in neutrals or color..a penetrating stain can sometimes make the concrete look like marble …especially beautiful in green