All you need to know about Horsetail weed

All you need to know about Horsetail weed? What is Horsetail Weed? Is it harmful to my garden? Will I have to spend a lot of money to remove it from my garden? When you find that you need to remove the Horsetail from your garden, what do you do? What are the pros and cons of using chemicals to remove them from your gardens?

What is Horsetail Weed

The Horsetail weed is a perennial weed that produces little green runners when it grows. It is found in North America, Europe, and Asia. The Horsetail weed belongs to the mint family, Lamiaceae. Other members of this family include pennyroyal, oregano, basil, parsley, chives, and Rosemary. When it grows as a flowering vine, but in its natural state the plant only produces the white or red flowers

Why Horsetail Weed is dangerous for garden

When we speak of weeds in the garden, we tend to imagine only those that grow in flowerbeds and around the edge of a fence, or occasionally in the lawns. But the truth is that many varieties can grow just about anywhere and can be quite harmful to your garden.

Ability to invade other plants

The reason Horsetail Weed is dangerous for the garden is its ability to invade other plants through its narrow stem that is very hard to see. It has a rigid stem that grows in a very short manner, up to twelve inches in length. It has three to four white star-shaped leaves and has a purple-black flower that blooms in the spring. This makes it easy to spot because it has a short stem and its white and purple flowers are quite noticeable. And once the stem is invasive, it takes over the entire soil, including roots and any other plant it can reach.

Aggressive and has a strong stem cell

Because this type of weed is aggressive and has a strong stem cell, it penetrates deep into the soil to reach roots. This enables it to dominate other gardens because it can destroy any other type of garden from its reach. What’s even worse is that once it’s established, it cannot be removed easily because it will just grow back stronger than before.

How to get rid of this weed

Natural and Organic methods

The best way to get rid of horsetail weeds is to have a garden that uses other natural, organic methods. This is especially true in the early stages of development. One such method is to use a fertilizer that consists of Bentonite clay. This natural mineral contains calcium, iron, zinc, manganese, and other trace minerals that are important to help your soil retain the nutrients that it needs to provide a healthy environment for your garden. These minerals can be lost when the fertilizer is washed away by the wind, so this is a necessary step to take when you are trying to get rid of the weed.

Organic fertilizer

You can also use other types of organic fertilizer to help your garden to get rid of weeds. Baking soda and manure (either from animal waste or human waste) are both valuable ways to fertilize your garden’s and get the results that you want. Both of these items are readily available at local nurseries or you can order them online.

Vinegar and mustard seeds

They are also very effective ways to get rid of weeds in your garden. Using vinegar in your flower beds will kill the roots of the weeds, which makes them unable to grow back and cause other problems for your garden. Using a mixture of water and vinegar on your garden is a great way to kill weeds that grow in hard to reach places, like in the underbrush. If you are having trouble removing a stubborn weed in your flower bed, try using vinegar and water and make sure that you get the plant to the bottom of the bed.

Conclusion

Horsetail is a good looking plant whose stems are tall and can be pulled easily into small sections. As its name suggests, this plant resembles the horse’s tail. This weed is 30 million years old and is known to have existed from 300 million years ago.