What does it look like?
Cathedral bells is a fast‑growing, evergreen climbing vine that can reach up six metres in height. The leaves are made up of three pairs of oval leaflets, dark green on top and whitish underneath, with twining tendrils growing from the midrib. The large, bell‑shaped flowers are green when young and turn purple as they mature.
The plant produces hard, oval capsules around five to eight centimetres long, which split open to release many winged seeds. Cathedral bells climb over trees and shrubs and is commonly found along forest margins, roadsides, riverbanks, gardens, hedges, shelter belts and in open areas.
Why is it a problem?
Cathedral bells can form dense canopy that smothers and out‑competes desirable plants, preventing native seedlings establishing. It tolerates a wide range of soil types and light conditions, including partial shade.
The plant produces large numbers of viable seeds that are spread by wind and water. It can also regrow from stem fragments, or where trailing vines touch the ground and take root, making it quick to spread once established.
Control methods
Cathedral bells is a pest plant listed for Eradication in the Hawkes Bay’s Regional Pest Management Plan. Please contact our biosecurity team for control advice and methods on 06 835 9200.
Related links
Notify Council
If you think you've found this pest, please get in touch with our Biosecurity Team at biosecurity@hbrc.govt.nz or call us on 0800 108 838.
Management Programme
Eradication Programme
An Eradication Programme attempts to reduce a pest's level of infestation to zero, across an infestation zone, over a specified time frame. To be successful; the rate of removal must exceed the rate of increase of the pest, reinvasion from other areas must be prevented, and all potentially reproductive individuals must be targeted. For these reasons, eradication programmes require robust design, efficient implementation, sufficient money, and trained field staff to be successful.
More informationNational Pest Plant Accord
All plants on MPI's National Pest Plant Accord (NPPA) are unwanted organisms under the Biosecurity Act 1993 whose formal or casual trade contributes significantly to their spread.
Plants on the Accord cannot legally be propagated, distributed, or sold in New Zealand. If allowed to spread further, these pest plants could seriously damage our economy and environment.
Unwanted Organism
An unwanted organism is any organism that's capable of causing harm to natural or physical resources (like forests and waterways) or human health. A number of introduced pests in New Zealand are classed as unwanted.
More informationRules
Sections 52 and 53 of the Biosecurity Act (1993)
No person shall knowingly communicate, cause to be communicated, release, or cause to be released, or otherwise spread any pest or unwanted organism, in accordance with Sections 52 and 53 of the Biosecurity Act 1993
More informationTaxonomies
FamilyPolemoniaceae
TypePlants
GroupClimber
HabitatLand
Management ProgrammeEradication ProgrammeNational Pest Plant AccordUnwanted Organism
