climbing rose not flowering

Hi all. I planted a climbing rose called 'Arthur Bell' easter time. Its growing beautifully and has one lead stem (which is definately not a sucker) which is racing up the arch. Im tying it in and stretching the other stems up too but there is absolutely no sight nor sound of any buds. The plant is in great condition and is now about a metre tall (main stem). Should i expect flowers this year ? Im assured its a super rose to grow and am looking forward to its highly scented flowers. Am i doing anything wrong ? Thanks guys

To get flowers on climbing roses you need to train the stems horizontally - otherwise, they put their energy into vertical growth and you will only get a few flowers at the top of the stem. So, if you're training it up an arch, I wouldn't expect many flowers until it's reached the top and been pulled sideways.

Oh.....i didnt realise that, thankyou. Is it too late to bend the stems ?? Im a trial and error kind of gardener. Obviously this was an error ! Whoops. which rose would be good for an arch then ?

No, as long as the stems are flexible you can pull them horizontal. I wouldn't rush to give up on your rose, though - if it's been in the ground for only a few months, I would expect it to be making roots and leaf at the expense of flowering. Train it in this year, and you should see flowers next year.

Just been and bent a couple !!! lol. Wouldnt say exactly horizontal but we'll give it a go......what do i do if the stem snaps ? I shan't give up, even if i get a few flowers it fills a spot. Ive got a book somewhere, ill hunt it out and have a read, maybe i should have done that first. Thanks

If you snap a stem, just prune it back to just above a pair of leaves and it will shoot again.