Old Man's Beard
Clematis vitalba
Washington State Classification
Class C — Widespread, County-Selected Control
Old man’s beard blankets the ground, shrubs and trees and can cause trees to collapse.
Quick Reference
Identification
Growth Habit
Old man's beard is a deciduous, perennial, climbing vine forming woody stems up to 65.6 feet (20 meters) long.
Leaves
Leaves are arranged opposite each other on the stems and are pinnately compound, divided into 5 leaflets. Leaflet margins are smooth to somewhat toothed. Leaflets have some small hairs on the leaf veins below and no hairs above.
Flowers
Flower clusters grow from leaf axils (area where leaf connects to stem) and also at stem tips. 3 to 22 flowers per cluster. Flowers do not have petals. Sepals, petal-like, white to cream, 4 to 6, about 2 times as long as wide with hairs on both sides.
Fruit & Seeds
Seeds with feathery hairs, each having a stem-like projection, 1.4 inches (3.5 cm) long. Clusters of seeds can be seen on plants all winter.
Impact
Old man’s beard blankets the ground, shrubs and trees and can cause trees to collapse. It can rapidly grow along the ground in thick layers, blocking out light for other plants.
Ecology & Spread
Habitat
Old man’s beard is found in forest lands, forest edges and openings, riparian areas, waste areas, roadsides and coastal and lowland areas. Please click here to see a county level distribution map of old man's beard in Washington.
Spread Mechanisms
Reproduction
Old man’s beard reproduces by seed and can spread vegetatively by stem fragmentation. An estimated 17,000 viable seeds are produced per 0.5 square meters in areas where it is a canopy species.
"
Control Methods
Mechanical
- Seedlings can be hand pulled. Larger stems need to be cut and removed from the area.