View source for Equisetum arvense

{{Short description|Species of horsetail}}
{{Italic title}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2020}}
{{Speciesbox
| image = Equisetum arvense foliage.jpg
| image_caption =  Photosynthetic summer branches
| status = {{TNCStatus}} 
| status_system = TNC
| parent = Equisetum subg. Equisetum
| genus = Equisetum
| species = arvense
| authority = [[Carl Linnaeus|L.]]
| synonyms =
{{hidden begin}}
*''Allosites arvense'' <small>Brogn.</small>
*''Equisetum arvense'' fo. ''arcticum'' <small>(Rupr.) M. Broun</small>
*''Equisetum arvense'' fo. ''boreale'' <small>(Bong.) Klinge</small>
*''Equisetum arvense'' fo. ''campestre'' <small>(Schultz) Klinge</small>
*''Equisetum arvense'' fo. ''ramulosum'' <small>(Rupr.) Klinge ex Scoggan</small>
*''Equisetum arvense'' subsp. ''boreale'' <small>(Bong.) Á. Löve</small>
*''Equisetum arvense'' subsp. ''ramulosum'' <small>(Rupr.) W.F. Rapp</small>
*''Equisetum arvense'' var. ''arcticum'' <small>Rupr.</small>
*''Equisetum arvense'' var. ''campestre'' <small>(Schultz) Rupr.</small>
*''Equisetum arvense'' var. ''ramulosum'' <small>Rupr.</small>
*''Equisetum boreale'' <small>Bong.</small>
*''Equisetum calderi'' <small>B. Boivin</small>
*''Equisetum campestre'' <small>Schultz</small>
*''Equisetum saxicola'' <small>Suksd.</small>
{{hidden end}}
|synonyms_ref=<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.tropicos.org/Name/26602003?tab=synonyms |website= Tropicos |title= Name – Equisetum arvense L. |access-date= 18 August 2018 |year= 2018 |publisher= Missouri Botanical Garden}}</ref>
}}

[[File:Equisetum arvense fertile spore-bearing stem - Keila.jpg|thumb|Fertile shoot]]
'''''Equisetum arvense''''', the '''field horsetail''' or '''common horsetail''', is an [[Herbaceous plant|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-[[Photosynthesis|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.<ref name=hwh>Hyde, H. A., Wade, A. E., & Harrison, S. G. (1978). ''Welsh Ferns''. National Museum of Wales {{ISBN|0-7200-0210-9}}.</ref><ref name=fna>Flora of North America: [http://www.efloras.org/florataxon.aspx?flora_id=1&taxon_id=233500616 ''Equisetum arvense'']</ref> It is sometimes confused with mare's tail, ''[[Hippuris vulgaris]]''.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Dao-Lan|first1=Xu|last2=Jian-Guo|first2=Cao|last3=Quan-Xi|first3=Wang|last4=Xi-Ling|first4=Dai|title=Cloning and Characterization of DEAD-box RNA Helicases Gene from the Fern Equisetum arvense|journal=Plant Diversity and Resources|date=November 2015|volume=36|issue=6|pages=715–722 |doi=10.7677/ynzwyj201414036|doi-broken-date=1 November 2024}}</ref>

Rhizomes can pierce through the soil up to {{convert|6|ft}} in depth. This allows this species to tolerate many conditions and is hard to get rid of even with the help of herbicides.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://oregonstate.edu/dept/nursery-weeds/weedspeciespage/horsetail/Equisetum_arvense_horsetail.html|title=Equisetum arvense horsetail|website=oregonstate.edu|access-date=2020-03-06|archive-date=14 November 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181114181423/http://oregonstate.edu/dept/nursery-weeds/weedspeciespage/horsetail/Equisetum_arvense_horsetail.html|url-status=dead}}</ref>

==Taxonomy==
[[Carl Linnaeus|Linnaeus]] [[species description|describe]]d field horsetail with the [[binomial nomenclature|binomial]] ''Equisetum arvense'' in his ''[[Species Plantarum]]'' of 1753.<ref>{{cite book | title=Species Plantarum | edition=1st | volume=II | last=Linnaeus | first=C. | authorlink=Carl Linnaeus | year=1753 | publisher=Laurentii Salvii | location=Stockholm | url=https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/359082|page=1061}}</ref> The [[Botanical name#Components of plant names|specific epithet]] ''arvense'' is from the [[Latin language|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.<ref name=Nox>{{cite book |title= Noxious Weeds of Australia |author= W. T. Parsons, William Thomas Parsons, E. G. Cuthbertson |edition= illustrated, revised |publisher= Csiro Publishing |year= 2001 |isbn= 9780643065147 |page= 14}}</ref>

Many species of horsetail have been described and subsequently synonymized with ''E.&nbsp;arvense''. One of these is ''E.&nbsp;calderi'', a small form described from Arctic North America.<ref>{{cite journal | last= Boivin | first= Bernard | date= January–March 1960 |title= A New Equisetum | journal= American Fern Journal |  volume= 50 | issue= 1 | pages= 107–109 | doi= 10.2307/1545251 | jstor= 1545251 | url= https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/part/230177 }}</ref>

===Names===
Some other common names include "horse pipes", "bottle-brush", "snake-grass", "devil's-guts", "horsetail fern", "pine-grass", "meadow-pine", and "foxtail-rush".<ref>{{cite web |title=field horsetail ''Equisetum arvense'' Weed Profile |url=https://weedid.cals.vt.edu/profile/73 |website=Weed Identification - Virginia Cooperative Extension |publisher=College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Virginia Tech |access-date=8 March 2024 |language=en}}</ref>
It is also known as "marestail", primarily in the UK,<ref>{{cite web |title=Field horsetail |url=https://www.gardenersworld.com/how-to/solve-problems/field-horsetail/ |website=BBC Gardeners World Magazine |access-date=8 March 2024}}</ref> but this common name is also used for the flowering aquatic plant ''[[Hippuris vulgaris]]'' and the common North American weed ''[[Erigeron canadensis]]''.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Hotchkiss |first1=Neil |title=Common Marsh, Underwater, and Floating-leaved Plants of the United States and Canada |date=1972 |publisher=Dover Publications Inc. |location=New York |isbn=978-0-486-22810-5 |page=60 |url=https://archive.org/details/commonmarshunder0000hotc/page/60 |access-date=8 March 2024 |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=Smith-Fiola |first1=Deborah |last2=Gill |first2=Stanton |title=Marestail: Identification and Management in Nursery and Landscape Settings |url=https://extension.umd.edu/resource/marestail-identification-and-management-nursery-and-landscape-settings |website=University of Maryland Extension |access-date=8 March 2024 |date=2021}}</ref>

==Description==
''Equisetum arvense'' creeps extensively with its slender and felted [[rhizome]]s that freely fork and bear [[tuber]]s. The erect or prostrate sterile stems are {{convert|10–90|cm|abbr=on}} tall and {{convert|3–5|mm|abbr=on}} diameter, with jointed segments around {{convert|2–5|cm|abbr=on}} long with whorls of side shoots at the segment joints; the side shoots have a diameter of about {{convert|1|mm|abbr=on}}. Some stems can have as many as 20 segments. The solid and simple branches are ascending or spreading, with sheaths that bear [[wikt:attenuate|attenuate]] teeth. The off-white fertile stems are of a [[succulent]] texture, {{convert|10–25|cm|abbr=on}} tall and {{convert|3–5|mm|abbr=on}} diameter, with 4–8 whorls of brown scale leaves and an apical brown spore cone. The cone is {{convert|10–40|mm|abbr=on}} long and {{convert|4–9|mm|abbr=on}} broad.<ref name=hwh/> The fertile stems are typically precocious and appear in early spring.<ref name=Manual>{{cite book |title=Gray's Manual of Botany |author= Merrit Lyndon Fernald |year= 1970 |editor= R. C. Rollins |publisher= D. Van Nostrand Company |edition= Eighth (Centennial) – Illustrated|isbn= 0-442-22250-5 |page= 4}}</ref> It has changed little from its ancestors of the [[Carboniferous]] period.

The plant is difficult to control due to its extensive rhizomes and deeply buried tubers. Fire, mowing, or slashing is ineffective at removing the plant as new stems quickly grow from the rhizomes. Some [[herbicide]]s remove aerial growth but regrowth quickly occurs albeit with a reduction in [[frond]] density.<ref name=Nox/>

''E. arvense'' is a nonflowering plant, multiplying through spores. It absorbs silicon from the soil, which is rare among herbs.{{citation needed|date=March 2020}} It has a very high [[diploid]] number of 216 (108 pairs of chromosomes).<ref name="hwh" />

==Habitat and distribution==
''Equisetum arvense'' grows in a wide range of conditions, in temperatures less than {{convert|5|C|abbr=on}} to greater than {{convert|20|C|abbr=on}} and in areas that receive annual rainfall as low as {{convert|100|mm|abbr=on}} and as great as {{convert|2000|mm|abbr=on}}. 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 [[loam]]s that are sandy or silty, especially where the water table is high, though it can occur occasionally on slightly acid soils.<ref name=Nox/>

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]], [[Australia]] and [[New Zealand]].<ref name=Nox/>

==Uses==
[[File:Equisetum arvense fertile.png|thumb|100px|Drawing of a fertile stem of ''E. arvense'', 10&nbsp;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 [[microphyll]]s. The stem has many strong lengthwise ridges.]]

=== Medicine ===
The plant contains several substances that can be used medicinally. It is rich in [[silicon]] (10%), [[potassium]], [[calcium]], manganese, magnesium and phosphorus, [[phytosterol]]s, 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 (season)|spring]]. All other ''[[Equisetum]]'' species are toxic.{{Citation needed|date=April 2024}} In polluted conditions{{Citation needed|date=December 2010}}, it may synthesize [[nicotine]].<ref name="Nicotine content of Equisetum">{{cite web|last=Bebbington|first=A|title=Toxicity of Equisetum to Horses|url= http://www.omafra.gov.on.ca/english/livestock/horses/facts/07-037.htm|accessdate=1 December 2010}}</ref>  

Recent research has shown limited evidence of anti-inflammatory, diuretic, antimicrobial, and antioxidant properties. <ref name="Equisetum arvense L.">{{cite book |last=Şeyma Şahinler |first=Saliha |title=Novel Drug Targets with Traditional Herbal Medicines |publisher=SpringerLink |year=2022 |isbn=978-3-031-07752-4 |pages=249–262 |chapter=Equisetum arvense L |doi=10.1007/978-3-031-07753-1_17 |chapter-url=https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-031-07753-1_17 |accessdate=12 October 2022}}</ref>  

=== Craft production ===
It was also once used to polish [[pewter]] and wood (gaining the name ''pewterwort'') and to strengthen [[fingernail]]s. It is also an abrasive. It was used by [[hurdy-gurdy]] players to dress the wheels of their instruments by removing resin build up.<ref>La Vielleuse Habile, Jean-Francois Bouin, 1761, p.  19.</ref>

=== 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).<ref>{{Cite web|title=Low-risk active substances and basic substances|url=https://www.hse.gov.uk/pesticides/pesticides-registration/applicant-guide/low-risk-active-substances.htm|access-date=2021-11-29|website=www.hse.gov.uk}}</ref> Horsetail extract can be used to fungal [[Pathogen|pathogens]] on crops including:<ref>{{Cite web|last=European Commission|title=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|url=https://mst.dk/media/171087/review-report-for-equisetum-arvense-l-rev7-vdo.pdf|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20220703110411/https://mst.dk/media/171087/review-report-for-equisetum-arvense-l-rev7-vdo.pdf|archivedate=2022-07-03}}</ref>

* Damping off (''[[Pythium]]'') and [[powdery mildew]] on cucumbers.
* Various fungal diseases of fruit trees, including scab (''[[Venturia inaequalis]]''), mildew, and [[Leaf curl|peach leaf curl]] (''Taphrina deformans'').
* Both [[Downy mildew|downy]] and powdery mildew on grapevines.
* [[Alternaria solani|Early blight]] (''Alternaria solani'') and Septoria blight (''[[Septoria lycopersici]]'') on tomatoes.
* [[Botrytis cinerea|Grey mould]], powdery mildew, red core, and [[Canker|anthracnose]] fruit rot (''Colletotrichum acutatum'') in strawberries.
* [[Alternaria solani|Early blight]], [[Phytophthora infestans|late blight]], and [[powdery mildew]] on potatoes.

''Equisetum'' is used in [[Biodynamic agriculture|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.<ref name="City Food Growers">{{cite web|last=Kearny|first=Peter|title=Bio Dynamic Prep 508|url=http://cityfoodgrowers.com.au/bd508.php|work=Bio Dynamic Prep 208|publisher=City Food Growers|accessdate=1 June 2011}}</ref>

=== Traditional medicine ===
''E. arvense'' has been used in traditional [[Austria]]n 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|date=April 2024}}

Externally it was traditionally used for [[chilblain]]s and wounds.<ref>Howard, Michael. ''Traditional Folk Remedies'' (Century, 1987); pp. 159–160</ref>

In Finnish traditional medicine, ''E. arvense'' ({{langx|fi|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:

* Green summer shoots, dried, as a remedy.
* Seen as preventing inflammation, strengthening skin and immune system.
* A [[decoction]] of ''E. arvense'' has been used internally to treat all kinds of lung diseases and externally to treat rashes and hard-to-treat wounds.<ref name="Piirainen2">{{cite book |last1=Piirainen |first1=Mikko |title=Kotimaan luonnonkasvit |last2=Piirainen |first2=Pirkko |last3=Vainio |first3=Hannele |date=1999 |publisher=WSOY |isbn=951-0-23001-4 |location=Porvoo, Finland |page=497 |language=fi |trans-title=Native wild plants}}</ref>

==Harmful effects==
''Equisetum arvense'' is toxic to stock, particularly horses.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://research.vet.upenn.edu/PoisonousPlantsofPA/Equisetumarvense/tabid/5438/Default.aspx |title=Equisetum arvense |work=Poisonous Plants of Pennsylvania |accessdate=3 March 2018 |archive-date=3 March 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180303110624/http://research.vet.upenn.edu/PoisonousPlantsofPA/Equisetumarvense/tabid/5438/Default.aspx |url-status=dead }}</ref>

It was introduced into [[New Zealand]] in the 1920s and was first identified as an [[Invasive species in New Zealand|invasive species there]] by [[Ella Orr Campbell]] in 1949.<ref name="Horticulture 2003">{{cite journal|last1=Clemens|first1=J|title=In Memory of Ella O. Campbell, DNZM, FRIH|journal=Royal New Zealand Institute of Horticulture|year=2003|volume=6|issue= 1 |page=2 |url=http://www.rnzih.org.nz/RNZIH_Journal/Page2_from_2003_Vol6_No1.pdf|accessdate=14 March 2015}}</ref> It is listed on the [[National Pest Plant Accord]], prohibiting its sale, spread and cultivation.<ref>{{cite book|last=Howell|first=Clayson|title=Consolidated list of environmental weeds in New Zealand|publisher=Department of Conservation|location=Wellington|date=May 2008|series=DRDS292|url=http://www.doc.govt.nz/upload/documents/science-and-technical/drds292.pdf|isbn=978-0-478-14413-0|accessdate=2009-05-06|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090530024209/http://www.doc.govt.nz/upload/documents/science-and-technical/drds292.pdf|archive-date=30 May 2009|url-status=dead}}</ref>

==Gallery==
<gallery>
File:Equisetum arvense Iceland 20070707.jpg|Equisetum arvense in Iceland
File:Equisetum arvense fr.jpg|Fertile shoots, in late April
File:Equisetum arvense diagram.png|A sterile stem of ''Equisetum arvense'', showing its leaves, stems and internodes
</gallery>

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
{{Commons|Equisetum arvense}}
* [http://www.passerelleco.info/article.php3?id_article=406 Une entreprise en procès pour avoir commercialisé de la prêle] {{in lang|fr}}
* [https://medlineplus.gov/druginfo/natural/843.html Horsetail] at Medline
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20160213102500/http://www.biosecurity.govt.nz/pests/field-horsetail Field Horsetail] at Biosecurity New Zealand
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20160315064426/http://wnps.org/landscaping/herbarium/pages/equisetum-arvense.html Washington Native Plant Society]
* [https://www.researchgate.net/publication/325806555_Short_Notes_of_Equisetum_arvense ''Short Notes of Equisetum arvense'', IEA Paper 2018]

{{Taxonbar|from=Q107592}}

[[Category:Equisetum|arvense]]
[[Category:Plants described in 1753]]
[[Category:Medicinal plants of Asia]]
[[Category:Medicinal plants of Europe]]
[[Category:Medicinal plants of North America]]
[[Category:Flora of England]]
[[Category:Flora of Europe]]
[[Category:Flora of Saint Pierre and Miquelon]]
[[Category:Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus]]