Host an Event Volunteer Join Tickets

Support the plant database you love!

Q. Who is Mr. Smarty Plants?

A: There are those who suspect Wildflower Center volunteers are the culpable and capable culprits. Yet, others think staff members play some, albeit small, role. You can torture us with your plant questions, but we will never reveal the Green Guru's secret identity.

Help us grow by giving to the Plant Database Fund or by becoming a member

Did you know you can access the Native Plant Information Network with your web-enabled smartphone?

Share

Ask Mr. Smarty Plants

Ask Mr. Smarty Plants is a free service provided by the staff and volunteers at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center.

Search Smarty Plants
See a list of all Smarty Plants questions

Please forgive us, but Mr. Smarty Plants has been overwhelmed by a flood of mail and must take a break for awhile to catch up. We hope to be accepting new questions again soon. Thank you!

Need help with plant identification, visit the plant identification page.

 
rate this answer
Not Yet Rated

Sunday - May 06, 2012

From: memphis, TN
Region: Southeast
Topic: Seed and Plant Sources, Container Gardens, Herbs/Forbs
Title: Need a source of mature horsetail plants in Memphis, TN.
Answered by: Jimmy Mills

QUESTION:

Where can I find mature horsetail plants in Memphis,Tn.? Need enough to fill a 6 foot long by one foot wide planter Need for it to look like it's been there forever.

ANSWER:


Horsetail plants are aquatic plants in the genus Equisetum, and have been around in some form since the Devonian Epoch (408-353 mya). This site has good photos of Horsetails.

Our NPIN Database shows nine species in North America with Equisetum arvense (Field horsetail) and  Equisetum hyemale (Canuela) occurring in Shelby County, Tennessee. The people at the Edward J. Meeman Biological Field Station of the University of Memphis could perhaps direct you to a local source of Equisetum.

 Davesgarden.com talks about a third species, and gives the name of a commercial source.

 

From the Image Gallery


Field horsetail
Equisetum arvense

Scouring-rush horsetail
Equisetum hyemale

More Seed and Plant Sources Questions

Search for Silver Magnolia from Coram NY
July 11, 2012 - Hi, 20+ years ago I purchased a small tree labeled Silver Magnolia from a catalog. It was a sapling about 8 inches high when I first received it but amazing! The bloom the first year was as big as my ...
view the full question and answer

Finding a source of Straggler daisy
October 14, 2015 - I've decided on Straggler daisy but am having trouble finding it. It would be perfect for me. Do I have to wait until next Spring for it to show up? Can it be ordered through a nursery or a landscape...
view the full question and answer

Trying to find a plant called sheepshire
May 17, 2010 - Hey there Mr. Smarty Plants, just one question. As a child in east Tennessee, we picked plants called sheepshire that looked like small clover leafs and had small yellow blooms. One could chew these...
view the full question and answer

Food value of cultivars of eastern red cedar (Juniperus virginiana)
May 21, 2008 - Can you suggest any resources regarding the wildlife value of native plant cultivars? For example, I can only buy an eastern red Cedar cultivar in my region: "Burkii" or "Emerald Sentinel". I w...
view the full question and answer

Source of wildflower seeds indigenous to Dallas area
February 21, 2003 - Where can I get wild flower seed indigenous to the N. Texas (Dallas) area?
view the full question and answer

Support the Wildflower Center by Donating Online or Becoming a Member today.