Horsetail
Plants of the The Taiga PlainsBalsam Poplar | Black Spruce | Cloudberry | Horsetail | Red Osier Dogwood Scrub Birch | Siberian Yarrow | Sphagnum Moss | Tamarck Trembling Aspen | White Spruce Equisetum arvenseAppearanceBunches of green stems with many whorled branches resembling bottle brushes. In spring, these green stems are replaced by blunt-tipped brown ones. Range & HabitatHorsetails can be found almost everywhere around the world except Australia and New Zealand, and they like to live in moist places like wet grasslands or woods, marshes or ditches. Life CyclePale brown fertile stems form cones that send out spores to produce new plants in the spring. When these stems wither, bunches of infertile green stems that resemble bottle brushes appear. Animal UsesBear and moose like to eat horsetails, but they can be toxic to horses. Traditional First Nations UsesThe rough stems of horsetails made them ideal for First Nations People to use them like sandpaper to smooth carved items like canoes or arrow shafts. They were also used to treat bladder and kidney problems. Modern UsesThere are many medicinal uses for horsetails, from external doses that help with burns, wounds or sprains, to internal remedies for kidney and bladder stones and other conditions. Status COSEWIC: Not at Risk More Information |
