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Story: Weeds of the bush

‘Old man’s beard must go!’

Video file

British ecologist David Bellamy fronted a late-1980s television advertisement that aimed to highlight the need to eradicate old man’s beard (Clematis vitalba). The plant remains a serious threat to large areas of native bush.

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TVNZ Television New Zealand

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How to cite this page

Bob Brockie, Weeds of the bush – More vines and scramblers, Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, https://teara.govt.nz/en/video/13625/old-mans-beard-must-go (accessed 19 June 2026).

Story by Bob Brockie, published 2 March 2009, updated 18 April 2016.