can you recognise this plant?

mikelata

Hi,

This plant has suddenly popped up in my garden, and it seems a bit invasive. It’s lovely, but I'm not sure what it is. Does anybody know what it is and what its properties are?

Thanks.

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con747

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2058365992/can-you-recognise-this-plant

I'm not sure what it's called but it's a pain to try get rid of it. I have it growing through the gravel and nothing much apart from salt kills it if it's the same plant/weed.

Mickeroo

Mare's Tail maybe?

mikelata

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122539904#Comment_122539904

It looks that way. I just checked https://www.rhs.org.uk/weeds/horsetail and it seems it spreads via deep rhizomes… which explains why @con747 cannot easily get rid of it

Would it compete with the grasses and azaleas?

Thargor

Definitely mares tail, every second post on the UK Gardening Reddit is about it, seems to be having a great year over there, might want to get on it now before it takes over everything, sounds like a nightmare.

monseiur

It is indeed Horse Tail sometimes called Mare's Tail. The only readily available weed killer that will kill it is Grazon Pro. It's a systemic herbicide which basically means that it's absorbed by the leaves and passed thru the plant to the roots ensuring a complete kill. Salt will just burn/scald what's above ground temporarily - it will regrow even more rigorously after.

Grazon Pro is not cheap at roughly €80 Litre but will last years if kept in a cool dark place with cap well sealed. It can be applied by knapsack sprayer or by brush, appropriate PPE must be worn

cobham

Umbrella Sedge from Madegascar? it is invasive but makes a hardy houseplant

looksee

Horsetail. It will compete (and win) with any plants, tarmac, everything. As said, Grazon very persistently applied for several seasons. Suggested that you trample on it a bit to break the surface before applying weedkiller. Its worth the effort as once it gets going it will take over.

Rows Grower

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2058365992/can-you-recognise-this-plant

It's actually a nice looking plant, I did a quick google there and it seems to have a lot of useful properties.

Igotadose

This thread's a good place for plant I.d. questions:

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2057970687/plant-weed-id-megathread#latest

mikelata

Thanks everybody for your replies.

I think I will act ASAP. I assumed the rhizomes were like bamboo ones, but apparently it spreads way deeper than bamboo and also spreads through spores.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​

I have a gravel area over a plastic membrane and I am afraid it will suddenly appear there. I will start by removing the plants

The Continental Op

Having fought mares tail for years I can be fairly sure you are unlikely to get on top of it.

The most effective treatment I have found is a glyphosate (roundup) wallpaper paste mix painted on the leaves, a strong 1 in 4 mix.

Don't remove anything just keep applying chemicals to the green growth.

looksee

Agree with TCO, don't remove the plant tops, you need them to treat it.

geographica

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122540072#Comment_122540072

I’ve found Finale kills it too, right into the ground, but not sure if still available to buy

mikelata

if using roundup, would that affect the other neighbour plants? grasses, azaleas, camelia

mikelata

Any view about grazon pro vs roundup?

The Continental Op

Any weed killer will affect other plants if it gets on them. Obviously be careful with the wallpaper mix. In the soil roundup has no effect on plants but Grazon will remain active in the soil. Grazon is really a chemical for use in grassland as it has no affect on grasses.

The problem with this weed is its prehistoric nature. The outside of the leaves is covered in silica and is somewhat hydrophobic in that it shrugs off water. That means any weed killer needs to wet the leaves and then get through the silica.

I favour roundup because it seems to do a better long term job. Grazon and a lot of other weed killers will kill the top off very effectively and keep it down for the year but its nearly always back the following year. Roundup is slower and slightly less comes back after each application. I've had success in a neighbors garden with the wallpaper mix and no sign this year of plants I painted last year but there weren't many to start with.

IMO you can get on top of a fresh infestation brought in on topsoil but established plants can have roots down 6 ft or more I've seen them when digging out old drains. A friend in the UK used to claim that in the fresh recently blasted face of a quarry he could see the roots going down through 30 ft through cracks in the rock.

Now would be a good time to use roundup as its likely the glyphosate will be taken back into the roots as the plant closes down for winter.

looksee

I know of someone who has an infestation that grew up through tarmac. He was advised to treat the stuff before replacing the tarmac but chose to ignore the advice, employed the same gang who put down the first lot to 'dig out' the tarmac and replace with infil and more tarmac, and its back as bad as ever. Meanwhile the adjacent grassy area (not lawn) is infested with the stuff, huge job to get rid of it but it needs a methodical approach.

mikelata

I tried to buy Roundup from 2 garden centres but they had none. Is this something you buy at larger stores like Woodies or B&Q?

looksee

You should be able to get it in Woodies or B&Q.

The Continental Op

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122542912#Comment_122542912

Try your local builders merchants/hardware store. You can also use the slightly cheaper Gallop. There are loads of minor variation of glphosate the main thing to check is that there is 360g/l of active ingredient.

This sort of thing

https://www.clarkesofcavan.ie/product/gallup-360-1ltr

Rows Grower

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122542912#Comment_122542912

You'll need a herd number.

The Continental Op

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122543225#Comment_122543225

Not in a hardware store, garden center or B&Q. Its quite legal to sell glyphosate based products to the general public provided they are in quantities of 1liter of less.

Glambia or whatever they call themselves now will want a herd number unless you are buying in the garden center part of their store.

looksee

Yes, you can buy a litre of the stuff without a herd number (or h&s cert), I bought some recently.

con747

I buy 5 litres of Gallup XL in my local Agri store and it's €48 and they just take my name and address, no herd number needed. Probably bending the rules but it suits me. It helps get rid of it for a while but it always reappears.

monseiur

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122542912#Comment_122542912

I tried Roundup on Horsetail without success, but Grazon Pro will kill it if you keep at it over a period of two to three years depending how bad the infestation is. The only positive thing about spraying it first with Roundup is that it will kill all other vegetation (if you wait three to four weeks) meaning that it will be easier to target the Horsetail and any regrowth that season. 1 litre of Grazon is almost the same price as 5 litres of Roundup

Best place to buy these products is a general hardware store or farmers Co Op store.

Rows Grower

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122543248#Comment_122543248

I didn't know 1 litre bottles were still sold over the counter I just presumed it was for all bottles a herd number was needed.

There's definitely some good marketing and sales negotiators working for this chemical crowd.

RainInSummer

I get the 5l Biactive version of Round Up online. No questions asked.

Another good killer of Mares Tail is Ammonium Sulfamate. However if the root system is well established you'll need multiple applications.

N.B. it will kill anything else it touches (like all the rest in fairness) and will prevent any growth for 8-12 weeks. Eventually it'll break down into fertiliser though.

mikelata

This is a zoomed-out view of the affected area. The mare tails are already touching the grasses, azaleas, and camellia. How can I protect them when applying the Roundup? Should I wrap them in plastic or something?

For the application, I just mix it with wallpaper paste, right? Any recommended ratio? Also, I assume I'll need to wait for dry weather

looksee

That is a very confined area of horsetail, I would expect it to be coming up through the gravel. I would suggest treating it immediately and keep at it. You may have to move the grasses out - put them in pots temporarily and keep checking for horsetail in the pots - then blast the main plants with systemic weedkiller. What is on the other side of that fence, is there an infestation on the other side?

mikelata

That fence divides my garden from the neighbours’. They have gravel so I d assume it is not showing up on their side yet but i will check with them

looksee

You might find yourself responsible for doing both sides if it appears its 'your' horsetail! 😁

mikelata

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122549796#Comment_122549796

just checked and they dont seem to have any. I guess that the roundup will potentially kill the rhizomes?

looksee

Yes, its a systemic weedkiller which means that it gets into the roots. Its the only kind that will work, just killing off the green tops is no use at all. Even then, it is going to need repeated dosing, every time you see new growth coming up, don't pull it, spray it. It could take several years so don't plant in that bed till it is gone. The camellia will probably be ok to leave there so long as you don't get spray on it.

mikelata

I bought the Roundup today. Unfortunately, I couldn't apply it because it was raining. I'll be traveling for the next two weeks, so I won't be able to start until I'm back unfortunately… Hope the spread is slow…

Just to make sure I know what I'm doing:

• I’ll wait for a dry day once I return.
• I'll transplant the grasses and azaleas into pots but leave the camellia in place.
• I'll mix the Roundup with wallpaper paste until it's sticky enough to adhere to the waxy horsetail stems and leaves without running off.
• Repeat each time I see a little stemp popping up

That is it I guess? I suppose that bed will only have the camellia for years to come? So the grasses and azaleas will be living in pots for a long time

Thanks!

looksee

It sounds like a lot of trouble, but especially since the growth is so restricted at the moment it is worth going all out and getting rid of it. Don't worry too much about the paste, just make it like it would be for hanging wallpaper, it will stick well enough.

mikelata

I am back from my travels and I have just done the job. Hope it will work out.
I could not get the paste to mix well with the product, so the spray was not working. I ended up using a brush to paint over the leaves. It looked wet at the end, but it is hard to know if I covered it all, as it was very bushy to start with.

What will theoretically happen now? How long does it take for the horsetail to go?

Thanks everybody for your help

looksee

It will show signs of dying back over about 3 weeks, but as it is horsetail it will not all die completely. I doubt you will do any good doing it again before the spring, but then do it again every couple of months. The paste will make it stick to the stems, but I reckon you would do as well to crush the plants a bit - just walk over them - then use a sprayer as normal, its a lot easier, just do it on a still day.

mikelata

so I should not plant anything ther for a while?

looksee

No, may be a couple of seasons - if you plant anything it will just be in the way when you are weedkilling, and get infested with the horsetail.

mikelata

The majority of leaves are pretty much dry, but there are still a couple of green leaves. Should I wait to see if they die, or did I maybe not apply the product evenly?

Jim_Hodge

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122616127#Comment_122616127

Cut away any obviously dead material. There seems to be signs of life there.

mikelata

Would the green life die through the rhizomes, or does it look like I will need to reapply to the remaining alive leaves?

The Continental Op

If you can see live parts of that weed then keep applying weed killer.

standardg60

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122616292#Comment_122616292

This is why (amongst other reasons) I don't recommend using the weedkiller beyond the recommended strength. What can happen is the leaves are burnt off before the weedkiller can translocate to the roots, so you get regrowth. The dead shoots should not look like that after only 5 days with roundup, re apply at the correct strength would be my advice.

The Continental Op

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122618997#Comment_122618997

Normally yes but getting anything into mares tail takes an effort so I wouldn't worry about overdosing in this rare case.