Native Plants
Search for native plants by scientific name, common name or family. If you are not sure what you are looking for, try the Combination Search or our Recommended Species lists.
Equisetum sylvaticum
Equisetum sylvaticum L.
Woodland Horsetail
Equisetaceae (Horsetail Family)
Synonym(s): Equisetum sylvaticum var. multiramosum, Equisetum sylvaticum var. pauciramosum
USDA Symbol: EQSY
USDA Native Status: L48 (N), AK (N), CAN (N), GL (N), SPM (N)
Horsetails are high in silicates (sand) so have been used as pot scrubbers and bottle brushes.
Plant Characteristics
Duration: PerennialHabit: Herb
Leaf Arrangement: Whorled
Fruit Type: Cone
Size Notes: Up to about 28 inches tall.
Leaf: Green
Bloom Information
Bloom Color: Not ApplicableBloom Notes: Not a flowering plant. Reproduces by spores contained within sporangia borne on peltate sporophylls. Sporulates Mar - May.
Distribution
USA: AK , CT , DE , IA , ID , IL , MA , MD , ME , MI , MN , MT , NC , ND , NH , NJ , NY , OH , PA , RI , SD , VA , VT , WA , WI , WV , WYCanada: AB , BC , MB , NB , NL , NS , NT , ON , PE , QC , SK , YT
Native Habitat: Forest Edge,Prairie/Meadow/Field,Wet Meadow/Prairie/Field,Riparian,Swamp/Marsh
Growing Conditions
Water Use: LowLight Requirement: Sun , Part Shade , Shade
Soil Moisture: Moist
CaCO3 Tolerance: Medium
National Wetland Indicator Status
Region: | AGCP | AK | AW | CB | EMP | GP | HI | MW | NCNE | WMVE |
Status: | FACW | FAC | FAC | FACW | FACW | FACW | FACW | FAC |
Web Reference
Webref 38 - Flora of North America (2019) Missouri Botanical Garden, St. Louis, MO & Harvard University Herbaria, Cambridge, MA.Webref 23 - Southwest Environmental Information Network (2009) SEINet - Arizona Chapter
Additional resources
USDA: Find Equisetum sylvaticum in USDA PlantsFNA: Find Equisetum sylvaticum in the Flora of North America (if available)
Google: Search Google for Equisetum sylvaticum
Metadata
Record Modified: 2023-03-30Research By: TWC Staff