IDENTIFICATION
Perennial.
A native BC plant, field horsetail has no true leaves and two kinds
of stems. In early spring, fertile, light-brown, jointed stems topped
with rounded, spore-bearing cones appear. These wither when the spores
are shed and infertile, green stems with whorls of leaf-like branches,
growing to 80 cm, remain until the fall. Extensive, dark, felt-like creeping
roots have small tubers.
DAMAGE
It is troublesome in pastures, hayfields, grainfields, orchards, nurseries,
landscapes and small-fruit crops. Field horsetail is poisonous
to young horses and sheep, especially when dried in hay, and it plugs
harvesting equipment. It often dominates swamps and stream banks. It is
sometimes used as ground cover to prevent soil erosion.
HABITAT
Field horsetail is often found on wet, poorly drained soils, but
it can grow under a very wide range of conditions. In British Columbia,
it is found in pastures, cultivated crops, landscape plantings, roadsides,
riverbanks, and shady forests. It occurs throughout BC, but is not regarded
as a major concern to any region.
SPREAD
Tiny spores are dispersed by water. Fragmented rhizomes and tubers may
be transported by agricultural and road building equipment.
