Index / Search / Equisetum laevigatum

§1 Plant

Equisetum laevigatum A. Braun

vernacular smooth horsetail — species · Equisetaceae


USDA
EQLA
GBIF
2687949
Rank
species
smooth horsetail (Equisetum laevigatum)
Platephotograph · Leslie SCC BY-NC source · iNaturalist ↗

§2Habit & range

Habit and range

Growth habit
Forb/herb
Duration
Perennial
Group
Horsetail
Family
Equisetaceae Michx. ex DC.
Genus
Equisetum
§2a

Native status, by region

  • CAN Canada Native
  • L48 Lower 48 States Native
§2b

County-level range

· 10 counties across 1 state
Legend Native · 10 Introduced · 0 Both · 0 Hover a county for detail.

§3Cultivation specs · USDA

Recorded by the USDA Plant Materials Program.

§3a

Tolerances

Drought
None
Shade
High
Moisture use
Low
Fire
High
Salinity
Low
Anaerobic
High
CaCO₃
Low
Hedging
None
§3b

Climate & soil

Cold tolerance
-38 °F minimum
Frost-free days
90 min.
Precipitation
10–45 in/yr
pH range
4.5–6.5
Root depth
10 in min.
Fertility need
Low
Soil texture
medium, fine
§3c

Form & growth

Growth form
Single Crown
Growth rate
Rapid
Lifespan
Moderate
Mature height
5 ft
Foliage colour
Green
Porosity (summer)
Porous
Porosity (winter)
Porous
Flower colour
Green
Fruit colour
Brown
Fire resistant
Yes
N fixation
None
Toxicity
Moderate
§3d

Reproduction

Bloom period
Early Spring
Seed abundance
Medium
Seed begins
Spring
Seed ends
Summer
Spread rate
Moderate
Stratify
No
Propagation
bare root, sprigs
§3e

Use & availability

Commercial availability
No Known Source
Nursery stock
No
Palatable, human
No
Lumber
No
Christmas tree
No

§4Counties, by state

Recorded in 10 counties across 1 state.


§5Sources & provenance

USDA PLANTS

Symbol, taxonomy, distribution, cultivation specs, native status. Public domain.

plants.usda.gov/EQLA ↗

GBIF Backbone

Canonical taxonomic identity, synonym resolution, cross-refs. CC0.

gbif.org/species/2687949 ↗

Record version

Cached and built locally. Source version on this record:

usda-plants-mt-2026-05-25

fetched 2026-05-25T18:27:19Z