Darren Greatbatch, Specialist Advisory Manager, Amenity & Invasive Weeds, at Environment Controls.
Last reviewed on .
There’s a lot of talk in the industry about ‘Horsetail’ Equisetum (often confused with Marestail) which is an invasive plant found in the UK and is known as a ‘living fossil’ – and for good reason. There are 8 subgenus Equisetum species of Horsetail, most of which are native to the UK, originating from prehistoric times. Horsetail is a tough plant and equally tough to get rid of. Definitely one for the experts to deal with, as this case study demonstrates.
In this article we show the three most common species of Horsetail, and what makes them different.
But first a word of caution: As rhizomatous plants, it is advised if planting decorative types of Horsetails such as ‘Rough horsetail’ to keep it in containers rather than plant it directly into the ground.
The 3 most common Horsetail species
Field Horsetail (Equisetum arvense)
This is the species of Horsetail we most commonly deal with. Field horsetail, being fully terrestrial (not needing marginal, wet or woodland ground to grow in) is a more commonly encountered nuisance to the built environment. Like all Horsetails is spreads via its underground rhizomes and tubers. It also spores in the spring but is less likely to spread via this mechanism. Stems are 0.1m-0.9m tall typically. It grows in any ground conditions but is not aquatic.
Great Horsetail (Equisetum telmateia)
Less common than Field horsetail, Great horsetail has similar visual characteristics to Field horsetail but grows to a much larger scale, 0.3m-1.5m tall typically, rarely more than 2m tall. The sterile stems are thicker than Field horsetail with a darker more defined black frill leaf collar located at the top of the node above the base of the branches (as shown in the image above). Typically found growing in woodland, damp shaded locations and ditches.
Rough Horsetail (Equisetum hyemale)
This variant of horsetail appears as a segmented cane (reed) only, with no branching stems. Typically Rough horsetail grows in water marginal areas, riparian zones, as well as damp and shaded locations.
control measures
Horsetail species grow via underground rhizomes which can reach as much as 2m (7ft) below the surface. To completely get these roots out requires excavation as any root fragments left in the ground will form new plants. Suppressing the rhizomes with a barrier in the upper layers of soil is effective as long as it’s a professional material designed for the job – if not the emerging stems can penetrate non-suitable barrier materials.
To find out more, book a survey or get a quote for removal, please speak to the team: