Equisetaceae - horsetail family

Gerald A. Mulligan (Agriculture Canada, Ottawa, retired) 1600 Apeldoorn Ave., Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, K2C1V5 Equisetum arvense L., field horsetail, prêle des champs Perennial, spreading by spores and creeping rootstocks that send up new shoots. Stems of two types: light brown, unbranched, ones 4 to 10 inches (10 to 25 cm.) high, terminating in a cone; branched stems , 8 to 12 inches (20 to 30 cm.) high, with whorls of 4-angled green branches arising at the joints; throughout our area; railways, hayfields, roadsides, waste places, and open woods; native to North America. Click on a photo to view an enlarged image. Weed Name Photo Weed Name Photo field horsetail, prêle des champs field horsetail, prêle des champs (underground rootstock with vegetative stems) field horsetail, prêle des champs (3 vegetative stems) field horsetail, prêle des champs (underground rootstock with fertile and vegetative stems) field horsetail, prêle des champs (emerging shoots)