Horsetail, Equisetum spp., is truly a wonder from another age. The Equisetum family are known as a ‘living fossils’ as they are the only living examples of the Equisetopsida class which formed the major part of the understory of the great Paleozoic forests. These covered the land for over 100 million years, roughly 542 to 541 million years ago, a time which saw the first large reptiles and an explosion in marine life. Now Equisetum arvense usually grows between 20-40 cm high, but at that time, its relatives grew up to 30 metres tall, giant green skeletons which stroked the heavens with their feathery branches. This era ended with the Permian- Triassic extinction event, or the Great Dying as it has become known, the largest mass extinction in the history of the Earth. It took the Earth 30 million years to recover. Horsetail however endured and, as a result, holds in its dreaming more than we humans, as relatively new species on Earth, can possibly imagine. Fossil records show that Horsetails made up a large part of the coal forest swamps and are therefore powering much of our current lifestyle.
There are a variety of species including Marsh, Water, Great and Wood Horsetails, several of which have been used for medicine, though the most commonly used is Field Horsetail, Equisetum arvense, as the others are thought to be more toxic. Even Field Horsetail can cause problems to livestock if they eat a large amount as it contains an enzyme which depletes thiamin (Vitamin B1) levels. This enzyme is deactivated by heat though so teas or decoctions will be safe long term for humans and animals alike. It’s best avoided in pregnancy however as it contains high levels of selenium. Horsetail is a gymnosperm, or non-flowering plant, which spreads through spores released by fertile stems. These grow up in spring to be replaced later in the season by the distinctive, segmented sterile stalks which are used in medicine. Horsetail thrives in damp soils so its no wonder that it’s made such a happy home here in the UK!
Uses: Horsetail is a wonderful example of the doctrine of signatures as its skeletal structure and jointed segments indicate one of its primary uses in strengthening and healing joints, bones and connective tissue. Matthew Wood writes, “If you pick the young plant and break the seal between the joints, there is still an elastic material within the joint that holds it together. As you roll the joint between your fingers, you will notice that it flexes much like one would want the knee or any joint to flex when bending. The idea of cartilage is immediately presented to the mind.” Famed for its high silica content it not only helps the musculoskeletal system but strengthens weak nails and hair when used either externally or internally as well as arteries and veins. This is also reflected in the strong stems which could be seen to relate to the various channels of the body.
It is also commonly used in conditions of the bladder including chronic cystitis, benign prostate enlargement, incontinence and enuresis (bedwetting) as it strengthens the connective tissue of the bladder and has astringent properties. As a kidney tonic, antiseptic, anti-inflammatory and antibacterial it is greatly beneficial for the whole urinary system and can be a helpful diuretic, reducing oedema and swelling.
The astringent and healing properties also make it a great wound herb when used externally as a compress or poultice.
Interestingly, Wood also uses Horsetail for any of the indications for which homeopathic Silica is recommended which can include nervousness with fidgeting, hair pulling, nail biting and sensitivity to cold with a lack of vital heat and poor peripheral circulation.
Methods of Preparation:
Tea – A tea from horsetail can be made by infusion (steeping in hot water) or decoction (simmering gently in a pan of water for about 15 mins). The decoction is preferred for its healing properties but an infusion is helpful as a gentle long term remedy for strengthening hair and nails. The silica in horsetail is water soluble so these are ideal preparations to be taken internally or used externally by adding to the bath, using as a compress or a strengthening hair rinse or nail soak. A tea made with Oatstraw is nice for supporting bone health, taken with St John’s Wort it may help in cases of bedwetting and with Yarrow, Couch Grass and Marshmallow it can help sooth cystitis.
Vinegar – This can be made by steeping Horsetail herb in apple cider vinegar for a month to six weeks, straining, then enjoying added to salads, diluted in water for compresses or added to the bath water – about 1/2 a cup. Vinegar is a particularly useful method for extracting minerals from a wide variety of herbs.
Tincture – Particularly helpful for urinary tract problems as well as general healing, I make mine in Vodka as the higher water content enables more of the minerals to be extracted.
Poultice – Maria Treben recommends lightly steaming the stems before wrapping in linen and lying on the affected part of the body, keeping warm with a hot water bottle and repeating as necessary.
Essence – An essence of horsetail is thought to be beneficial for communication, helping us connect with different levels of our being and with each other.
I find Horsetail a fascinating and enchanting plant. It whispers of another age when it was as mighty as the great dinosaurs with which it shared the land and reminds us of the immense history of our home, the inevitability of change and the responsibility we now have as its caretakers.
Now I don’t know about you, but one thing I remain unconvinced of it’s similarity to a horse’s tail. I think it bears a much closer resemblance to a cat’s tail, especially a raggedy, yet beautiful, old tortoiseshell’s tail like this one. What do you think?
References:
Fossil Photos courtesy of Louisville Fossils and Fossil Mall, all other photos Lucinda Warner 2010
Hedgerow Medicine – Julie Bruton-Seal and Matthew Seal
The Book of Herbal Wisdom – Matthew Wood
Flora Britannica – Richard Mabey
Health through God’s Pharmacy – Maria Treben
The Desktop Guide to Herbal Medicine – Brigitte Mars
Oh what a great post Lucinda!
Thank you for the ‘time travel’ 😉
In German horsetail is called ‘Zinnkraut’ which means ‘tin herb’ in English. It is called this way because our ancestors used it to scrub their tin dishes with it. I also twisted it and used it to scrub my ‘modern’ pots and pans when living in Austria. Unfortunately I haven’t found it here in New Zealand yet.
I also roasted dried stems and used it grounded as flour. Tastes very nice and is for sure unique in a kitchen pantry 🙂
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Thanks Brigitte 🙂
Wow, I’ve never heard of making flour from the stems before! Did you use the inner part of the fertile stem? I’ve heard that’s edible or was it the sterile stalk as used for medicine? What did you make with it? I’ll have to try this sometime, it’s a great idea.
xx
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You can eat both. The fertile stems might be better if you are in the wild so you can mash the inner part and add other edible things like sorrel seeds. Make small flat breads and bake on hot stones or in a pan over the fire.
I roasted the stems of the sterile stalks and worked them through the coffee grinder to receive flour. Think you can use it unroasted but roasting enhances some flavour 😉
Funny for me is, you write about sterile stems to use as medicine, because some people use only fertile stems as their medicine… I use both since they both work fine for urinary problems and contain the lovely silica for beautiful hair 🙂
Japanese people eat the buds of horsetail and since they look like asparagus I tried them stir fried in butter. YUM!
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Oh I forgot!
How about horsetail bud pickles?!
Have fun in the kitchen 😉
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Such great ideas, thank you so much for sharing them.
It’s really interesting to hear you say that some people only use fertile stalks, I was always taught ‘only the sterile stalks and only when young.’ I’ll definitely try the others next year and compare!
I’ve heard they taste a bit like asparagus. Pickles are a great idea too.
Thanks again 🙂 xx
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Hi Lucinda
Thank you for another beautiful and inspiring blog, I love reading them and transporting myself to a different, greener world! In your Horsetail article you mention that it is useful as a wound healer when applied externally, do you think it would also help if regularly taken internally as I have a tendancy to heal slowly (from cuts/ grazes etc)
Thank you, Rachel x
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Hi Rachel, Glad you’re enjoying the blog 🙂
Slow wound healing can be due to a wide variety of causes but usually it means you need to stock up on nutrients so herbs that are rich in minerals like horsetail, nettle and oatstraw can definitely help. Nourishing infusions of oatstaw or nettle can be a good way to maximise your minerals. Susan Weed has a little video on YouTube explaining how to make them here:
Take care x
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Thank you so much for the advice, I shall seek out ways to add these to my diet and let you know how I get on! Xx
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Did you also know?
ROSE BLACKSPOT
Biodynamic spray: equisetum (horsetail) tea is a spray used by biodynamic growers to strengthen a plant’s resistance to disease infection. Take 3/4oz dried horsetails and simmer for 30 minutes in 2 pints of rain water. Stand for 24 hours. Make up to 1 gallon, stirring the mixture for about 15 minutes. This mixture will keep for a couple of weeks. Spray the plants thoroughly every 10-14 days, starting early in the season. The later sprayings can be more dilute (making the solution up to as much as 10 gallons) but should always have a pale yellow-green or brown colour and smell of horsetails.
http://www.longfordcoco.ie/coco_content.aspx?id=10032&terms=horsetail
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Having recently moved into my house, we have put a lot of effort into the garden. I am a bit of a novice, but ideally wanted a garden that fulfills a purpose. I saw horsetail as a weed,taking over my available space!
I stumbled accross a Neal’s Yard remedie book, that said it was good for menstuation and lung problems. I note u have not directly mentioned lung problems? (sorry if you have and I missed it) What kind of problems could that be?
My other question is, how long will a decoction keep, and should it be stored in the fridge? Can I mix in some honey while it simmers, or other herbs to make it a “super” decoction, or would the counteract against each other?
Thank you for changing my perception of this “weed”.
Nina
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Hi Nina,
I personally don’t use horsetail for lung problems but I could see that as an astringent it would tone the mucus membranes of the lungs if there was a lot of phlegm. Also as it helps to strengthen connective tissue it could help restore the lungs after chronic coughs or infections.
Your decoction would last a few days in the fridge and then you would need to make a new batch. It is great infused in vinegar if you want something that will last longer. You can definitely add some honey, though allow the mixture to cool a little first as high heat will destroy the benefica enzymes in the honey. You could also mix it with other herbs but it woud depend on what effect you wanted as to which you would choose.
Hope that it helpful to you! So many weeds are beneficial medicines when you get to know them!
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So many times I’ve heard that weeds are actually good plants growing in places where you don’t want them to.
My first battle was with dandelions, then I found out you could eat those, then I found this blog while looking for answers on how to get rid of my horsetail.
I’m definitely going to try using it for my hair and nails – that sounds interesting.
Thanks for the blog!
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I have read you are supposed to wait to tincture the shoots when they get stalkier in summer. What do you think? I tinctured the green ones and now am thinking i will have to use it externally instead somehow.
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Hi Lucinda! I just wanted to know more about Horsetail, and I found your blog. Thanks for the great article! Oh, and speaking of weeds, do you happen to know whether there is a website somewhere speaking of beneficial weeds and their usage? That would be a great place to visit!
Thanks again, I love to use natural plants in my diet!
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I don’t know of one specific website but lots of herbal and wild food websites will have information about wild plants that are usually considered weeds. This book is also nice:
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Thank you so much, dear Lucinda! I ordered it just now! Can’t wait to get it! 🙂
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Thank you so much for your expertly written articles as well as the time and care you spend answering questions. At our allotments most people get very upset when they find horsetails encroaching on their plot. They’ve yet to tell me what problems they cause. I have been using a decoctment to strengthen the leaves of some of my more tender plants and fruit trees. And my hair of course! Will definitely try cooking them too soon!
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hi there! thanks for sharing this info. how much horsetail to water would you use for making a tea?
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[…] Horsetail: Ancient Wonder, Modern Medicine […]
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I’ve just made several jars of horsetail apple cider vinegar, and I weighted the horsetail with fermenting weights. It’s been six weeks, so I’m going to strain and bottle it today. When I opened each jar, a scobie has formed the n the top of each jar. What can I use these for?
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