How to Combat Horsetail Weed

How to Combat Horsetail (Equisetum arvense) Weed

Horsetail, also known as cats' tail or mare's tail, is a persistent plant found in many gardens. It spreads quickly and can overtake other plants. Fortunately, there are various methods to combat horsetail weed.

Identifying Horsetail

Horsetail is a plant that you can find everywhere, even between the tiles on the ground. It has a hollow stem with small leaves that grow in whorls and can grow up to 1 meter high. Horsetail loves moist and poor soil, so you will often see it in damp areas such as near rivers. It grows quickly and is difficult to remove because it has deep roots.

Responsibly Combating Horsetail

I receive emails almost daily with questions about combating horsetail. Recently, I received a question from Diana:

"Good afternoon, I have a lot of horsetail in my garden and saw online that lava meal is a good remedy against horsetail, but I can't figure out how to apply it and in what quantity. Part of my garden, by the water, is about 25 square meters. Additionally, I have some other beds where this weed quickly spreads. Could you provide me with information on this? Thank you for your time. Best regards, Diana"

Why Does Someone Get Horsetail in Their Garden?

One reason is that the soil no longer contains enough minerals on the surface. Horsetail is a plant that can extract its nutrients deep from the soil, making it thrive on poor soil. The plant actually brings minerals back to the soil surface. Horsetail is therefore a signal plant indicating that there are too few minerals in the soil. When the soil is acidic, horsetail has even more opportunity to settle.

Horsetail brings minerals back to the surface through the process of dying, decomposing, and regrowing. By weeding the green parts and, for example, putting them in a worm tower, you break that process and the minerals do not return to the garden but end up in the worm compost. So theoretically, weeding horsetail works counterproductively.

What to Do Against Horsetail?

Manual Removal

Digging Out: Horsetail has deep roots, so it is important to remove as much of the roots as possible. Use a sharp shovel to dig deep.
Repeated Removal: Since the roots are difficult to completely remove, the plant will often regrow. Consistently remove new shoots.

Covering the Soil

Covering the soil literally is a drastic measure but effective. Covering the soil for two years should be sufficient to suppress horsetail, but it is not very practical.

Mulching: Covering the soil with a thick layer of mulch can suppress the growth of horsetail. Mulch blocks sunlight, preventing horsetail from photosynthesizing properly.
Ground Cover Plants: Planting fast-growing ground cover plants can help smother and displace horsetail. However, this is not a complete solution as horsetail can easily grow between other plants.

Improving the Soil (The Best Method)

Adding Worm Compost: Horsetail thrives in poor soil. By enriching the soil with worm compost and organic material, you make the soil less suitable for horsetail and make minerals easier to absorb.
Adding Lava Meal: As mentioned earlier, horsetail extracts minerals deep from the ground and brings them to the surface. When you add lava meal or lava grit to the soil, you replenish the necessary minerals, removing the function of horsetail. Horsetail also prefers acidic soil. By adding lava meal, you increase the pH value of the soil, which can discourage the growth of horsetail.

Using basalt flour or rock dust

Yay, Frank is now going to tell you that sprinkling a bit of lava meal will make the horsetail problem disappear like snow in the sun. Unfortunately, applying lava meal to revitalize the soil is a process that takes several years to eliminate horsetail. However, I have already heard from people that halving in one year is not uncommon.

The bottom line is that improving the soil by replenishing minerals and helping the soil life to get back on track offers a solution. Horsetail between the tiles remains difficult to combat. You can 'dissolve' lava meal in a watering can with water and pour it between the tiles after removing the horsetail. The more often it is repeated, the better.

Dosage of basalt flour or rock dust

A minimum of 400 grams per m² per year is recommended for lava meal. The minerals take away the function of the horsetail and ensure a better pH value.

Using Worm Compost

Worm compost (1 liter to 5 liters per m²) ensures that minerals are better and faster absorbed by plants. Lava meal thus works better, and you immediately add a lot of soil life to the soil.

Conclusion

By applying a combination of these methods, you can effectively control and reduce the growth of horsetail in your garden. It may take some time and effort, but with perseverance, you can successfully combat horsetail.

Do you have any questions or comments, or would you like to share your experience on this topic? Please leave a comment below.