Weeds stop traffic

When Mary Bellaart harvested nine acres of pine trees on her Havelock North property she never expected to stop traffic.
But that is exactly what happened: One year after clearing the trees virtually all nine acres sprouted wildflowers, bringing traffic to a halt at the weekend.
Mrs Bellaart said the flowers were weeds that turned up all over Hawke's Bay but she was surprised to see so many. She blames the "horrible wind" for covering her Te Mata Road property in the towering growth.
"They're very difficult to spray, they're above my head!" After buying the property in 1979, Mrs Ballaart and her husband John planted pines on their steep land.
"We had to do something, we didn't want sheep or cattle, and that's what you did in those days," she said. When the trees matured last year they were harvested and sold, only to be replaced by the wildflowers.
One neighbour suggested Mrs Bellaart get a cattle beast to eat the flowers but she hoped they would just dry out.
While she wanted to be rid of the flowers eventually, she was pleased so many people were able to enjoy them as they drove past during Labour Weekend.
"It's something extra for them to look at," she said.