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You are here: Home / Plant Profile

Equisetum arvense L.
field horsetail



General Information
Symbol: EQAR
Group: Horsetail
Family: Equisetaceae
Duration: Perennial
Growth Habit: Forb/herb
Native Status: AK   N?
CAN   N
GL   N
L48   N
SPM   N
Characteristics
Data Source and Documentation
About our new maps
Plants-NRCS Logos
green round image for nativity Native blue round image for introduced Introduced ocre round image for introduced and nativity Both white round image for no status Absent/Unreported
image for native, but no county data Native, No County Data image for introduced, but no county data Introduced, No County Data both introduced and native, but no county data Both, No County Data
Native Status:
lower 48 status L48    Alaska status AK    Hawaii status HI    Puerto Rico status PR    Virgin Islands status VI    Navassa Island NAV    Canada status CAN    Greenland status GL    Saint Pierre and Michelon status SPM    North America NA   

Images

click on a thumbnail to view an image, or see all the Equisetum thumbnails at the Plants Gallery

Robert H. Mohlenbrock. USDA SCS. 1989. Midwest wetland flora: Field office illustrated guide to plant species. Midwest National Technical Center, Lincoln. Provided by USDA NRCS Wetland Science Institute (WSI). Usage Requirements.

©Thomas G. Barnes. Barnes, T.G., and S.W. Francis. 2004. Wildflowers and ferns of Kentucky. University Press of Kentucky. Usage Requirements.

©Elaine Haug. Provided by Smithsonian Institution, Department of Botany. United States, VA, Glouchester. Usage Requirements.

©Al Schneider. Southwest Colorado Wildflowers. United States, CO, NM, AZ, UT, Four Corners vicinity, within 150 miles of the corners. Usage Requirements.

Britton, N.L., and A. Brown. 1913. An illustrated flora of the northern United States, Canada and the British Possessions. 3 vols. Charles Scribner's Sons, New York. Vol. 1: 39. Provided by Kentucky Native Plant Society. Scanned by Omnitek Inc. Usage Requirements.

USDA NRCS. Wetland flora: Field office illustrated guide to plant species. USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service. Provided by NRCS National Wetland Team. Usage Requirements.

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Synonyms

Symbol Scientific Name
EQARA Equisetum arvense L. var. alpestre Wahlenb.
EQARB Equisetum arvense L. var. boreale (Bong.) Rupr.
EQARC Equisetum arvense L. var. campestre Wahlenb.
EQARR Equisetum arvense L. var. riparium Farw.
EQCA Equisetum calderi B. Boivin

Classification

Click on a scientific name below to expand it in the PLANTS Classification Report.
Rank Scientific Name and Common Name
Kingdom Plantae – Plants
Subkingdom Tracheobionta – Vascular plants
Division Equisetophyta – Horsetails
Class Equisetopsida
Order Equisetales
Family Equisetaceae – Horsetail family
Genus Equisetum L. – horsetail
Species Equisetum arvense L. – field horsetail

Subordinate Taxa

This plant has no children

Legal Status

U.S. Weed Information
Equisetum arvense
field horsetail
scouring rush
western horsetail
This plant can be weedy or invasive according to the authoritative sources noted below.This plant may be known by one or more common names in different places, and some are listed above. Click on an acronym to view each weed list, or click here for a composite list of Weeds of the U.S.
N'EAST Uva, R.H., J.C. Neal,and J.M. DiTomaso. 1997. Weeds of the Northeast. Cornell University Press. Ithaca, New York.
NE&GP Stubbendieck, J., G.Y. Friisoe,and M.R. Bolick. 1994. Weeds of Nebraska and the Great Plains. Nebraska Department of Agriculture, Bureau of Plant Industry. Lincoln, Nebraska.
WSWS Whitson, T.D. (ed.) et al.. 1996. Weeds of the West. Western Society of Weed Science in cooperation with Cooperative Extension Services, University of Wyoming. Laramie, Wyoming.

Wetland Status

Interpreting Wetland Status

North America
Alaska FAC
Arid West FAC
Atlantic and Gulf Coastal Plain FAC
Eastern Mountains and Piedmont FAC
Great Plains FAC
Midwest FAC
Northcentral & Northeast FAC
Western Mountains, Valleys, and Coast FAC

Wildlife

Food

Source Large Mammals Small Mammals Water Birds Terrestrial Birds

Cover

Source Large Mammals Small Mammals Water Birds Terrestrial Birds

Description of Values

Value Class Food Cover

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