Dublin Bay

Where to plant. Walls, wide wall trellises, pergolas, fences. A support is essential, and a wall or a wide trellis is better than a narrow column — the variety needs space to spread its canes. Compact among climbers (2.4–3.7 m), so it also suits smaller gardens.

Climate. Withstands frosts down to about −20…−23 °C, USDA 6b–9b, RHS H6. In Ukraine the canes are taken down from the support for winter, bent to the ground and covered.

Care. Full sun for abundant repeat flowering in flushes until autumn. Tying in the long canes horizontally encourages flower buds along their whole length. Thanks to its very high disease resistance, few preventive sprays are needed.

Name. 'Dublin Bay' is named after Dublin Bay (Ireland), the breeder's homeland.

Breeding. Bred by the Irish breeder Sam McGredy IV in 1969, introduced in 1975. Breeding code MACdub. Parents: Bantry Bay × Altissimo. Class: large-flowered climber (Large-Flowered Climber).

Significance. One of the healthiest red climbers, which keeps its bright red colour and does not turn pink. It won a gold medal in The Hague (1977), the Best Climber of New Zealand title (1992) and the RHS Award of Garden Merit (1993). The variety is valued for its looks and abundant repeat flowering rather than its scent — the scent of 'Dublin Bay' is weak.