Equisetum arvense | |
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Photosynthetic summer branches | |
Scientific classification ![]() | |
Kingdom: | Plantae |
Clade: | Tracheophytes |
Division: | Polypodiophyta |
Class: | Polypodiopsida |
Subclass: | Equisetidae |
Order: | Equisetales |
Family: | Equisetaceae |
Genus: | Equisetum |
Subgenus: | E. subg. Equisetum |
Species: | E. arvense
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Binomial name | |
Equisetum arvense | |
Synonyms[1] | |
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Equisetum arvense, the field horsetail or common horsetail, is an herbaceous perennial plant in the Equisetidae (horsetails) sub-class, native throughout the arctic and temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere. It has separate sterile non-reproductive and fertile spore-bearing stems growing from a perennial underground rhizomatous stem system. The fertile stems are produced in early spring and are non-photosynthetic, while the green sterile stems start to grow after the fertile stems have wilted and persist through the summer until the first autumn frosts.[2][3] It is sometimes confused with mare's tail, Hippuris vulgaris.[4]
Rhizomes can pierce through the soil up to 6 feet (1.8 m) in depth. This allows this species to tolerate many conditions and is hard to get rid of even with the help of herbicides.[5]
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: CS1 maint: DOI inactive as of January 2024 (link)