Equisetum arvense

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Equisetum arvense
Equisetum arvense foliage.jpg
Photosynthetic summer branches
Status TNC G5.svg
Secure  (NatureServe)
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Division: Polypodiophyta
Class: Polypodiopsida
Subclass: Equisetidae
Order: Equisetales
Family: Equisetaceae
Genus: Equisetum
Subgenus: E. subg. Equisetum
Species:
E. arvense
Binomial name
Equisetum arvense
L.
Synonyms [1]
  • Allosites arvenseBrogn.
  • Equisetum arvense fo. arcticum(Rupr.) M. Broun
  • Equisetum arvense fo. boreale(Bong.) Klinge
  • Equisetum arvense fo. campestre(Schultz) Klinge
  • Equisetum arvense fo. ramulosum(Rupr.) Klinge ex Scoggan
  • Equisetum arvense subsp. boreale(Bong.) Á. Löve
  • Equisetum arvense subsp. ramulosum(Rupr.) W.F. Rapp
  • Equisetum arvense var. arcticumRupr.
  • Equisetum arvense var. campestre(Schultz) Rupr.
  • Equisetum arvense var. ramulosumRupr.
  • Equisetum borealeBong.
  • Equisetum calderiB. Boivin
  • Equisetum campestreSchultz
  • Equisetum saxicolaSuksd.
Fertile shoot Equisetum arvense fertile spore-bearing stem - Keila.jpg
Fertile shoot

Equisetum arvense, commonly known as field horsetail or common horsetail, is a species of vascular plant in the horsetail family Equisetaceae. Like all horsetails, it is a type of fern. It is native throughout the arctic and temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere. It has two distinct growth forms, a fertile spore-bearing stem and a sterile green stem. It is sometimes confused with mare's tail, Hippuris vulgaris .

Contents

Description

Equisetum arvense is a perennial herbaceous plant that spreads by means of an underground rhizome. The slender, felted rhizome freely forks and bears stem tubers. The species is dimorphic, that is, it exhibits two distinct growth forms, both arising from the same rhizome. Fertile spore-bearing stems begin to appear in April. After shedding its spores, a fertile stem promptly whithers and dies. Sterile green stems appear around the same time but last throughout the summer until the first frosts of autumn. [2] [3] [4]

The erect or prostrate sterile stems are 10–90 cm (3.9–35.4 in) tall and 3–5 mm (0.12–0.20 in) diameter, with jointed segments around 2–5 cm (0.79–1.97 in) long with whorls of side shoots at the segment joints; the side shoots have a diameter of about 1 mm (0.039 in). Some stems can have as many as 20 segments. The solid and simple branches are ascending or spreading, with sheaths that bear attenuate teeth. The off-white fertile stems are of a succulent texture, 10–25 cm (3.9–9.8 in) tall and 3–5 mm (0.12–0.20 in) diameter, with 4–8 whorls of brown scale leaves and an apical brown spore cone. The cone is 10–40 mm (0.39–1.57 in) long and 4–9 mm (0.16–0.35 in) broad. [2] The fertile stems are typically precocious and appear in early spring. [5] It has changed little from its ancestors of the Carboniferous period.

E. arvense is a nonflowering plant, multiplying through spores. It absorbs silicon from the soil, which is rare among herbs.[ citation needed ] It has a very high diploid number of 216 (108 pairs of chromosomes). [2]

Taxonomy

Linnaeus described field horsetail with the binomial Equisetum arvense in his Species Plantarum of 1753. [6] The specific epithet arvense is from the Latin "arvum", meaning "ploughed", referencing the growth of the plant in arable soil or disturbed areas. The common name "common horsetail" references the appearance of the plant that when bunched together appears similar to a horse's tail. [7]

Many species of horsetail have been described and subsequently synonymized with E. arvense. One of these is E. calderi, a small form described from Arctic North America. [8]

Names

Some other common names include bottle-brush, devil's-guts, foxtail-rush, horse pipes, horsetail fern, meadow-pine, pine-grass, and snake-grass. [9] It is also known as marestail, primarily in the UK, [10] but this common name is also used for the flowering aquatic plant Hippuris vulgaris and the common North American weed Erigeron canadensis . [11] [12]

Distribution and habitat

Equisetum arvense grows in a wide range of conditions, in temperatures less than 5 °C (41 °F) to greater than 20 °C (68 °F) and in areas that receive annual rainfall as low as 100 mm (3.9 in) and as great as 2,000 mm (79 in). It commonly occurs in damp and open woodlands, pastures, arable lands, roadsides, disturbed areas, and near the edge of streams. It prefers neutral or slightly basic clay loams that are sandy or silty, especially where the water table is high, though it can occur occasionally on slightly acid soils. [7]

The plant is widespread in the Northern Hemisphere, growing as far as 83° North in North America and 71° North in Norway, Sweden, Finland, and Russia and as far south as Texas, India and Iran. It is less widespread in the Southern Hemisphere, but it occurs in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Madagascar, Indonesia, and Australia. [7] It was introduced into New Zealand in the 1920s where it was identified as an invasive species by Ella Orr Campbell in 1949. [13] It is listed on the National Pest Plant Accord, prohibiting its sale, spread and cultivation. [14]

Toxicity

Equisetum arvense is toxic to livestock, particularly horses. [15] It is difficult to control due to its extensive underground rhizomes, [16] which can penetrate the soil up to 6 feet (1.8 m) deep. Fire, mowing, or slashing are ineffective since new stems quickly grow from the rhizomes. Some herbicides remove aerial growth but regrowth quickly occurs albeit with a reduction in frond density. [7]

Uses

Drawing of a fertile stem of E. arvense, 10 cm as drawn. At the top is the strobilus, which consists of the axis (inside) and 15-20 horizontal circles of about 20 sporangiophores. Lower on the stem are two sheaths of merged microphylls. The stem has many strong lengthwise ridges. Equisetum arvense fertile.png
Drawing of a fertile stem of E. arvense, 10 cm as drawn. At the top is the strobilus, which consists of the axis (inside) and 15–20 horizontal circles of about 20 sporangiophores. Lower on the stem are two sheaths of merged microphylls. The stem has many strong lengthwise ridges.

Medicine

The plant contains several substances that can be used medicinally. It is rich in silicon (2-3%),[ citation needed ] potassium, calcium, manganese, magnesium and phosphorus, phytosterols, dietary fiber, vitamins A, E and C, tannins, alkaloids, saponins, flavonoids, glycosides and caffeic acid phenolic ester. The buds are eaten as a vegetable in Japan and Korea in spring. All other Equisetum species are toxic.[ citation needed ] In polluted conditions[ citation needed ], it may synthesize nicotine. [17]

Recent research has shown limited evidence of anti-inflammatory, diuretic, antimicrobial, and antioxidant properties. [18]

Craft production

It was also once used to polish pewter and wood (gaining the name pewterwort) and to strengthen fingernails. It is also an abrasive. It was used by hurdy-gurdy players to dress the wheels of their instruments by removing resin build up. [19]

Horticultural and agricultural

In horticulture and agriculture, an aqueous extract of E. arvense has been approved for use as a fungicide in the European Union and the United Kingdom (since Brexit). [20] Horsetail extract can be used to prevent fungal pathogens on crops including: [21]

Equisetum is used in biodynamic farming (preparation BD 508) in particular to reduce the effects of excessive water around plants (such as fungal growth). The high silica content of the plant reduces the impact of moisture. [22]

Traditional medicine

E. arvense has been used in traditional Austrian herbal medicine internally as tea, or externally as baths or compresses, for treatment of disorders of the skin, locomotor system, kidneys and urinary tract, rheumatism and gout.[ citation needed ]

Externally it was traditionally used for chilblains and wounds. [23]

In Finnish traditional medicine, E. arvense (Finnish : peltokorte) has been especially valued for its high concentration of silicic acid and has been seen to help and been used in a number of ways:

In Iran, infusion of its shoots is believed to be a remedy against diabetes and obesity. [25]

References

  1. ↑ "Name – Equisetum arvense L." Tropicos. Missouri Botanical Garden. 2018. Retrieved 18 August 2018.
  2. 1 2 3 Hyde, H. A.; Wade, A. E.; Harrison, S. G. (1978). Welsh Ferns. National Museum of Wales. ISBN   0-7200-0210-9.
  3. ↑ Hauke, Richard L. (1993). "Equisetum arvense". In Flora of North America Editorial Committee (ed.). Flora of North America North of Mexico (FNA). Vol. 2. New York and Oxford: Oxford University Press. Retrieved 20 November 2025– via eFloras.org, Missouri Botanical Garden, St. Louis, MO & Harvard University Herbaria, Cambridge, MA.
  4. ↑ Reznicek, A. A.; Voss, E. G.; Walters, B. S. (February 2011). "Equisetum arvenseL.". Michigan Flora Online. University of Michigan. Retrieved 20 November 2025.
  5. ↑ Merrit Lyndon Fernald (1970). R. C. Rollins (ed.). Gray's Manual of Botany (Eighth (Centennial) – Illustrated ed.). D. Van Nostrand Company. p. 4. ISBN   0-442-22250-5.
  6. ↑ Linnaeus, C. (1753). Species Plantarum. Vol. II (1st ed.). Stockholm: Laurentii Salvii. p. 1061.
  7. 1 2 3 4 Parsons, W.T.; Cuthbertson, E.G. (2001). Noxious Weeds of Australia (2nd ed.). Collingwood: CSIRO. p. 14. ISBN   0643065148.
  8. ↑ Boivin, Bernard (January–March 1960). "A New Equisetum". American Fern Journal. 50 (1): 107–109. Bibcode:1960AmFJ...50..107B. doi:10.2307/1545251. JSTOR   1545251.
  9. ↑ "field horsetail Equisetum arvense Weed Profile". Weed Identification - Virginia Cooperative Extension. College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Virginia Tech. Retrieved 8 March 2024.
  10. ↑ "Field horsetail". BBC Gardeners World Magazine. Retrieved 8 March 2024.
  11. ↑ Hotchkiss, Neil (1972). Common Marsh, Underwater, and Floating-leaved Plants of the United States and Canada. New York: Dover Publications Inc. p. 60. ISBN   978-0-486-22810-5 . Retrieved 8 March 2024.
  12. ↑ Smith-Fiola, Deborah; Gill, Stanton (2021). "Marestail: Identification and Management in Nursery and Landscape Settings". University of Maryland Extension. Retrieved 8 March 2024.
  13. ↑ Clemens, J (2003). "In Memory of Ella O. Campbell, DNZM, FRIH" (PDF). Royal New Zealand Institute of Horticulture. 6 (1): 2. Retrieved 14 March 2015.
  14. ↑ Howell, Clayson (May 2008). Consolidated list of environmental weeds in New Zealand (PDF). DRDS292. Wellington: Department of Conservation. ISBN   978-0-478-14413-0. Archived from the original (PDF) on 30 May 2009. Retrieved 6 May 2009.
  15. ↑ "Equisetum arvense". Poisonous Plants of Pennsylvania. Archived from the original on 3 March 2018. Retrieved 3 March 2018.
  16. ↑ "Equisetum arvense horsetail". oregonstate.edu. Archived from the original on 14 November 2018. Retrieved 6 March 2020.
  17. ↑ Bebbington, A. "Toxicity of Equisetum to Horses" . Retrieved 1 December 2010.
  18. ↑ Şeyma Şahinler, Saliha (2022). "Equisetum arvense L". Novel Drug Targets with Traditional Herbal Medicines. SpringerLink. pp. 249–262. doi:10.1007/978-3-031-07753-1_17. ISBN   978-3-031-07752-4 . Retrieved 12 October 2022.
  19. ↑ La Vielleuse Habile, Jean-Francois Bouin, 1761, p. 19.
  20. ↑ "Low-risk active substances and basic substances". www.hse.gov.uk. Retrieved 29 November 2021.
  21. ↑ European Commission. "Review report for the basic substance Equisetum arvense L. Finalised in the Standing Committee on the Food Chain and Animal Health at its meeting on 20 March 2014 in view of the approval of Equisetum arvense L. as basic substance in accordance with Regulation (EC) No 1107/2009" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 3 July 2022.
  22. ↑ Kearny, Peter. "Bio Dynamic Prep 508". Bio Dynamic Prep 208. City Food Growers. Retrieved 1 June 2011.
  23. ↑ Howard, Michael. Traditional Folk Remedies (Century, 1987); pp. 159–160
  24. ↑ Piirainen, Mikko; Piirainen, Pirkko; Vainio, Hannele (1999). Kotimaan luonnonkasvit[Native wild plants] (in Finnish). Porvoo, Finland: WSOY. p. 497. ISBN   951-0-23001-4.
  25. ↑ Buso, Piergiacomo; Manfredini, Stefano; Reza Ahmadi-Ashtiani, Hamid; Sciabica, Sabrina; Buzzi, Raissa; Vertuani, Silvia; Baldisserotto, Anna (February 2020). "Iranian Medicinal Plants: From Ethnomedicine to Actual Studies". Medicina . 56 (3): 15. doi: 10.3390/medicina56030097 . hdl: 11392/2427783 . PMC   7143749 . PMID   32110920.
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