Question
We live on Sumas Prairie (lots of wind) in southern B. C. in Zone 6.  I have one climbing rose (Joseph's coat) twining over a split rail fence.  I want to plant some low hardy bush roses in front of the fence(west, facing road).  Right now they will get sunshine all day but we have just planted a paperbark maple (slow grower) east of the fence so in 5 - 10 years they may have morning shade.  

I have another area which receives sunshine all day where I would like to plant some climbers and bush roses.  I would like to know what other plant(s) interplant well with these roses to cover the ground?  I would also be interested in hardy climber & bush rose recommendations, especially if they are fragrant.  

Answer
Roses aren't too happy sharing their space with other plants so the plants you chose should not have deep roots if they are to be planted close to the rose roots. They should also like the same conditions as the roses, such as full sun and lots of water, and bloom at the same time as the roses. So any of the annuals flowers are fine. I use many different campanulas because the blues go with all the rose colours and they come in different heights and spread well. If they get too close to the base of a rose I can just yank them out easily. Keep in mind that anything that is called a ground cover is probably very vigorous and will take over if happy in the garden. Many people use herbs because they don't demand any attention and blend well. Many gardeners plant small and medium size bulbs around the roses as the bulbs get the sun in the spring and then get the shade the rose bush gives them in the hot summer. For perennials just chose those that have smaller leaves than the roses or they will compete with them.
Zone 6 is okay for many roses and most should survive the winter for you. However Josephs Coat is not known as a very hardy rose so it might be a wisdom to put a 12 inch pile of compost, mulch, bark chips, straw, anything around the base to make sure that if it does die back you will have some canes to grow again. The secret to saving troublke keeping roses alive is to pick those that do well in a zone colder than yours. So if a rose doesn't need protection in zone 5 iot will be good in your winter. Here are some that flower and do well.
William Baffin is a large climber and can get very big.
Aloha is a climber but grows like a large shrub.
Leverkusen a semi double soft yellow.
Westerland an orange and yellow climber.
Austumn Sunset a rich yellow with red buds.
Ilse Krohn Superior the best of the white climbers.
New Dawn one of the best pale pinks.
Rosarium Uetersen is a carmine pink.
Viking Queen a rose pink and very fragrant.
John Davis flowers a lot.
For shrubs thses are good.
Sally Holmes loads of creamy white flowers.
Bonica is one of the best shrubs with many flowers.
Henry Hudson is a good single white with red buds.
Hawkeye Belle looks like a hybrid tea and is fragrant.
Prairie Princess is a tall rose pink shrub and can be used as a climber.
The Fairy is a low shub that spreads sideways.
Any of the Meidiland series such as Red, White, Pink Meidilands.
Golden Wings has very large single pure yellow flowers and lots of them.
The Austin roses, Graham Thomas, Abraham Darby, Mary Rose, A Shropshire Lad and others should be fine in your zone.
All rugosas will do well for you. If you like fragrance then Roseraie de l'Hay is vert fragrant and large. All of the Pavement Series are also very fragrant.
There is a German breeder called Kordes which breeds mainly for gardeners in the north of Germany which is cold and very windy. I have found that most of his hybrid teas and floribundas do much better than others in cold climates.
Hope this helps. Lynnette
A tip:- Roses die back in the winter or die completely because their canes have not hardened off enough. Just make sure they get no more fertilizer after the end of July and this will start the hardening process early enough to get them through the cold.