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 Container Gardens Questions

Holding an Acer rubrum in a container for two years
October 10, 2008 - Dear Mr. Smarty Plants, I am thinking about ordering a Red Maple tree that is cultivated from Mount Vernon. I appreciate the historic nature of such a tree. The tree will be shipped to me and is ...
view the full question and answer

Keeping bonsai plants alive in Athol MA
September 21, 2009 - For the past 12 years I have raised bonsai plants in AL and FL, but recently moved back to central MA. My collections consists of Japanese maples, ginkos, bald cypress and ficus benjamina. I have a ...
view the full question and answer

Can Mock Orange be grown in a container?
March 29, 2011 - Can the Mock Orange Shrub be grown as a container "plant"? I have seen apricots and apple trees (certain varieties, of course); grown this way.
view the full question and answer

Wintering a Lemon Cypress tree in Eagan MN
September 29, 2009 - I Have a 2 1/2' Lemon Cypress Tree. I'm wondering if I can leave it outdoors for the winter, if not, how would I winter over indoors?
view the full question and answer

Smarty Plants on Blue Cohosh
April 21, 2005 - I acquired a potted plant of Blue Cohosh at a sale. My question is where can I plant it? I live in Seattle but also garden in Zone 5 at Lake Wenatchee Washington. Shade or sun? How hardy is it? ...
view the full question and answer

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