|
 An
Illustrated Guide to
Common Weeds
of New Zealand
Equisetum
arvense
field
horsetail
Family
EQISETACEAE
Reproduced from
Common
Weeds of New Zealand
by Bruce Roy, Ian Popay, Paul Champion, Trevor James & Anis
Rahman
ISBN 0 473 09760 5
by kind permission of the
New Zealand Plant
Protection Society
Publication or other use of images or descriptive
text on these pages is unauthorised unless written permission is
obtained from the authors and publisher. Appropriate acknowledgement
of the publication Common Weeds of New Zealand must always
be given.
Available from Manaaki-Whenua
Press and Touchwood
Books
Erect, rhizomatous,
colony-forming perennial. Shoots with whorls of needle-like branches
similar to spurrey. Aerial parts die back each winter and appear
again in spring. Cone-like structures at the tip of fertile shoots.
Allied to ferns.
- Flowers No
flowers, but cone-like structures, 1-4 cm long, at the tips of
fertile stems contain spores.
- Fruit No
fruit.
- Leaves Long,
thin, needle-like branches in whorls resemble leaves.
- Stems Erect,
green, grooved, with branches in whorls, sterile, up to 80 mm
long by 5 mm diameter. Smaller but thicker, unbranched, brown
fertile stems appear in spring and die after shedding spores in
summer.
- Roots Extensive
underground rhizomes, bearing round tubers, creeping and branching
freely penetrate to considerable depths, especially in shifting
sand banks in rivers.
Habitat
Damp ground, river-banks,
lake margins and sandy or gravelly soils.
Distribution
Uncommon but recorded
from Kawhia, Havelock North, New Plymouth, Wanganui, and lower
Rangitikei in NI. Marlborough, Nelson (200 ha infestation in a
valley near Karamea), Christchurch and Dunedin in SI. Originally
from temperate regions of northern hemisphere.
Comments
Used a pot scourer
in olden days in Europe, and for some homeopathic preparations.
Very difficult to control either with herbicides or by cultivation.
Common weed in parts of Europe. Species is toxic to animals. Of
limited distribution in NZ, and could become more widespread.
Listed on the National Pest Plant Accord
(see Introduction for details).
Derivation
of name
Equisetum (Lat.)
= horse bristle, the sterile stems resembling horses' tails; arvense
(Lat.) = of cultivated fields.
Web-notes:
Weed Links
On this site
Reproduced from Common Weeds
of New Zealand:
External Links
 Weedbusters
New Zealand
- Weedbusters is a weeds awareness and education programme that aims to
protect New Zealand's environment from the increasing weed problem.
 New
Zealand Plant Conservation Network Weeds Fact Sheets
- Search for 1500 weed fact sheets mainly derived from the Department of
Conservation's BIOWEB weeds database.
 New
Zealand Plant Protection Society
- Their main objective: "To pool and exchange information on the biology
of weeds, invertebrate and vertebrate pests, pathogens and beneficial organisms
and methods for modifying their effects."
-
 New
Zealand Landcare Trust
- Plant Pest information including Pictures, Distribution Maps, References,
Environmental Effects and Control.
-
- New
Zealand Aquatic Weeds
- Hosted by the weed management group of NIWA (National Institute of Water
and Atmospheric Research).
-
- Weed
Control Manual for the Bay of Plenty
- Weeds information compiled by Environment Bay of Plenty.
-
 Massey
University Weeds Database- A site providing information about New Zealand weeds and weed control.
It has a series of pages showing pictures of New Zealand weeds, notes on
identification and control. It also provides information on a university
paper entitled Controlling Weeds.
-
- Canterbury
Weed Guide
- A weed identification guide prepared by the Christchurch City Council.
-
- Australian
Plants as Weeds
- Part of the Association of Societies for Growing Australian Plants website.
- Department
of Agriculture Western Australia
- Collection of weed resources from the Department of Agriculture, Government
of Western Australia
- Weed
Society of Victoria
- Promoting wider awareness and interest in weeds and their management.
Includes a useful page of links
to other weed societies.
-
- Tamar
Valley Weeds Strategy
- Listing of common and botanical names, images, and information including
control methods for weeds found in Tasmania, and also on the Australian
mainland.
-
-
- New
Jersey Weed Gallery, USA
- Listing of common and botanical names and images, plus a small amount
of information for weeds that cause problems in the USA.
- Invasive
and Exotic Species of North America
- Images and other information from the University of Georgia.
- University
of California
- Weed Photo Gallery, with common and botanical names.
-
- World
of Weeds
- Weed-related resources including weed science, practical tools, gardening
tips about controlling weeds, and environmental news updates.
-
- Invasive
Species Specialist Group
- "The ISSG aims to reduce threats to natural ecosystems and the native
species they contain by increasing awareness of invasive alien species,
and of ways to prevent, control or eradicate them."
-
- Invasive
Woody Plants
- Collection of research and associated literature for invasive woody plants
in the tropics and the temperate zone.
-
- WeedScience.com
- Site that includes a comprehensive collection of weed images from around
the world.
-
-
 Books
on Weeds from FetchBook.Info
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