Horsetail

[bario1]

This morning i noticed a few weird grey/brown things that look like asparagus spears about 6" tall coming up between flags on my allotment... a coincidental google search of 'horsetail' just now seems to suggest that that's what they are! I hear people moaning about horsetail quite a lot on this forum, so i'm guessing its bad news that i have it - can anyone suggest the best way to control it/get rid of it?

Thanks.

[Veggielot]

I get quite a lot and I find the best way is to dig out as much as possible, it will regrow from the roots. If you cant dig it up pull out as much as possible. The asparagus looking ones produce what I think is pollen/spores so try to get those as soon as you can. I don't know if you will get rid of it completely but it can be controlled/reduced if you remove it as soon as possible.

[Normans Mum]

I have it all the way through my plot. Like Veggielot says, it will regrow, but over time it will become weaker and obviously, the more you dig out the better ! The bulb headed bits are the main culprits, so burn those. I just dug as much out as I could last year, still managed to grow things despite it coming through.

[mrgrower]

It's nightmare stuff I have it all over my front garden and now found I have it on my plot get up as much as you can.


MG

[bario1]

Groan - as if the slugs aren't enough to contend with! Thanks for the replies.

[zazen999]

To be honest, there are worse weeds to have. If you can just hoe and ignore, then don't get too stressed. You can boil it up and use as a blight treatment or it makes nice hair conditioner you know.

[Two_Sheds]

weird grey/brown things that look like asparagus spears

Those are the breeding ones, full of spores ~ they come up before the green Xmas tree bits. Pull them up carefully, don't spill any spores, and bag them up tight

I have a lot of horsetail on the school plot: we shade it out with taller plants, and pull up as and when it appears.

nectar bar before & after | Flickr - Photo Sharing!

I also fork out as much of the black root as I can get to.

It's controlled, but not eradicated

[Dotty Sarah]

It's just started popping up all over my plot and as I've walked around the site it seems to be everywhere. The good news is that although it's even on my neighbours perfect plot, he seems to have done a good job of controlling and digging it out as it's only around his fruit bushes.

[Olorin2001]

A very ancient plant group, a living fossil, edible, makes excellent scourer and if dry is good for polishing wood, has a long history of medical use. In the late Paleozoic forests some Equisetopsida were large trees reaching to 30 meters tall, so be thankful you only have to tolerate little ones. Grows from an extensive root system, highly resistant to poisons as it has a silica coating allowing it to shed water better than a ducks back. Spreads by spores in strobili, cone-like structures at the tips of some of the stems in spring. General cultivation, addition of humus and fertiliser give unfavourable conditions for it to thrive, damp or wet rather poor acid soils are what it loves. It has even been found growing in coal mines with only dim artificial lighing, you'll never get rid of it so treat it like a useful but unwanted herb, but if it drives you mad then move to Antarctica as it's the one place it doesn't grow.

[bario1]

I saw all the dusty spores floating out as i pulled up the spears.... damn! Havent seen any in the beds though, so i guess as Olorin says, it prefers uncultivated areas like paths and wasteground. Hopefully it'll just be a case of keeping it in check. Not sure i can be bothered making hair conditioner (i don't have much use for that stuff anymore), but blight treatment sounds interesting....

[mrgrower]

It's been found down mine shafts especially in the coal mines so that gives you an idea of this weed as said though there are worse weeds

[Ananke]

I made my peace with horsetail a few years ago. I dig out what I can when I'm turning the soil and hoe it just like the rest of the weeds.

It grows so deep it probably doesn't take many nutrients away from my veg.

[Two_Sheds]

it prefers uncultivated areas like paths

Yes, it's underneath the weed membrane & decking. Rather than dig it out, our garden designer just covered it up. It runs underneath the decking & paths, and pops up in the beds and even in the pond

[snakeshack]

horrified to see a cultivated variety in the aquatics section at my local GC for£4.think i'm a potential millionaire

[morverngirl]

I bought a weed killer specifically for horsetail off the internet, it works with repeat sprayings. My plot , which I took on a year ago was covered and now just a few pieces which I spray as they appear, hopefully all gone by end of this year.