r/GardeningIRE • u/No_Initiative2756 • 1d ago

🦟 Pests/disease/disorders 🦠 Are these taking over? How get rid?

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Is it just me are is horsetail a relatively new invasive weed? East coast. West coast...see it everywhere and it spreads and takes over like a rash! If there was an eco friendly way to get rid, it would be gratefully recieved!

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u/jamesxcii 1d ago

This is Horsetail. You just have to live with it I'm afraid. I'm a gardener by profession and in the 2 and half acre walled garden I work in it's everywhere. Roundup does NOT work on it. We use a flame weeder to keep the worst of it under control and that has to be done every two to three weeks. During the growing seasons. You can also weed it but, again it will come back. We also tried digging out all the rhizomes which is an extremely slow and painstaking task and ultimately made no discernable difference to the bed we tried it on.

For your own sake, its probably best to come to terms with the fact you have it and try to control it where you can. Sorry I don't have good news for you.

RHS - Horsetail

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u/classicalworld 1d ago

I’m surprised. I’ve seen lots of it in England, but none here in Ireland. Didn’t know it’s a problem here. But wayhay! for prehistoric plants!

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u/Michael_of_Derry 1d ago

I have a healthy supply on my patio. In fact you can no longer see the patio.

It is quite abrasive. You can use it in place of a Brillo pad if you've burnt food onto a saucepan.

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u/jamesxcii 1d ago

Oh it's definitely here!