Equisetum palustre

Marsh horsetail

Family: Equisetaceae · Type: perennial · Native

Conservation status: CNPS 3

Marsh horsetail is a native perennial found in northern California Coast Ranges and the San Francisco Coast Ranges in marshes at elevations below 300 meters. Reproductive timing is not specified in available data, but the plant produces green stems distinctive in structure. Growing 20 to 80 centimeters tall, this horsetail develops annual stems with distinctive segmented architecture. Its stems feature 4 to 6 rounded ridges and are distinctively hollow, with branch sheaths 4 to 9 millimeters long and bearing 5 to 10 teeth. Each branch sheath is longer than wide, with teeth measuring 2 to 5 millimeters and standing free from the main stem structure.

Habitat: Marshes

Elevation: < 300 m

Bioregions: NCoRI, CCo (San Francisco)

Data from The California Species Project — 14,000+ California species with verified data from CNPS, CDFW, USFWS, Jepson eFlora, Cal-IPC, and more.