Climbing roses are pruned less harshly and less regularly than shrub roses since many (including 'Westerland') can bloom on both old wood (stems grown the prior year) and new wood (stems growing that summer developing flowers as they go). While pruning them in spring would not hurt the plant, it would potentially remove that first set of flower buds that the plant cannot replace. Don't prune in fall; you can wait until about late February into March if you need to do minor trimming. A video by one of the major rose wholesale growers demonstrates rose pruning techniques that might be helpful; the focus is shrub roses but he addresses climbers near the very end since there is little pruning done for them. The other reason major pruning on climbing roses is avoided is because they are grown with the intent of gaining height and covering a structure, which they would not easily do if routinely cut back each winter and forced to regrow lost height.

It might be easier to mulch around the whole arbor base (on the side that still has lawn) so lawn equipment doesn't have to get too close to the rose stems, since any bark cuts could become serious injuries that cause stem dieback.

You shouldn't need to do much for winter preparation...mulch can be laid about 3 inches thick over the root zone (if it isn't already) and you can continue to monitor the plant for watering needs as we move into fall (we've had the occasional droughty fall before and some areas of central Maryland are still in drought). The rose looks very good!

Miri

You're welcome!

Hello Beth,

The roses look great! Their stature and growth habit at this point are quite normal. Rose stems are often thick enough that making more-or-less right-angle turns on a square-top arbor or pergola isn't easy. All we can suggest is to try either snipping the tips of the tallest stems (after peak bloom, in case that reduces flowering if done too early) closer to the arbor corners so they form side branches that are more easily trained and tied to the structure, or allowing the uppermost canes (stems) to grow taller where the canes can then arch over on their own where they will drape themselves over the arbor top. Vines that actually twine as they grow tend to be more structure-hugging and easier to shape than those that don't really hold themselves up, as with roses. (Climbing roses tend to just grow upright and as the stems arch, their thorns are what catch on other plants or supports to hold themselves up, so their stems haven't evolved to be very bendy since they aren't wrapping around something to hold on.)

Miri

Be cautious about over-fertilizing; liquid fertilizer every 2 weeks, unless that is what is specifically recommended on the product label, might be a bit much. Roses can be "heavy feeders" but the soil usually isn't deficient in key nutrients, so a light to moderate supplementation with fertilizer can boost growth but isn't always necessary. (Only a laboratory soil test can reveal what the nutrient levels are actually like in the soil. Nitrogen, not measured by testing labs because it fluctuates too much naturally, is generally the main boost that helps with foliage lushness and color.)

Miri

You're welcome!