We just bought two small horsetail plants for our front yard. But now we are told they are hard to control and can grow out of control affecting other plants around it. Is this true?
2007-08-20 04:27:19 · 5 answers · asked by suebubble 1 in Home & Garden ➔ Garden & Landscape
I'm as shocked as 'Jason'.
Don't plant it. It is super invasive and once it gets loose, I'm not aware of anyway to get it back 'in bounds', except for sterilizing the garden area.
Because it's a prehistoric plant (so to speak), it grows differently than other plants. Common chemicals may kill back the top, but they quickly re-grow. Never pull the stuff, every root you leave behind starts a new plant, so from 5 misplaced weeds, you jump to 20 by pulling! I don't know of any chemical control that's effective.
If you "MUST" have them, buy a large plastic pot, line it with landscape fabric, fill it with soil, and plant the horse tail in that. You can sink the pot into the ground to give it the illusion of being planted. Be sure the top of the pot is above the soil line in the ground, to keep the horse tail from spreading out of the pot. That'll contain it for a while, for how long though? who can say.
I hope that this helps
Good luck-
2007-08-20 06:36:30 · answer #1 · answered by Kevin C 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Yes, they spread a lot. I live in the southwest, and even here it grows like crazy if they find a good spot. My friend started out with one shoot in front of her house, now she has a flowerbed full. I guess it gets the runoff from her roof, cause she doesn't have all that much moisture in her yard. But I'd say you shouldn't plant it unless you have a lot of space around a pond or something.
2007-08-20 06:39:40 · answer #2 · answered by snakegrrl 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Take the others' advice to heart. It is extremely invasive and will soon overwhelm most other stuff. If you're going to use it, put it in a pot. They really like water, but will grow OK, even if not heavily waterered. I have a couple of pots of it in my garden pond, but won't plant it anywhere else.
2007-08-20 05:40:46 · answer #3 · answered by thegubmint 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I don't think it is a good idea because it propagates out of control and in time it will look bad, especially if you have other plants around it
2007-08-20 05:03:36 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
It is incredibly invasive & should not be planted, especially near any bodies of water where it will choke out all the beneficial vegetation.
Check out this link http://aquaplant.tamu.edu/database/emergent_plants/horsetail.htm
2007-08-20 05:23:15 · answer #5 · answered by ETXGardener 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋