Flora of North America species comparison

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Equisetum pratense

Equisetum ×litorale

meadow horsetail, prêle des prés, shady horsetail

horsetail, prêle littorale, shore horsetail
Sheaths

somewhat elongate, 3–5 × 2–4 mm;

teeth 8–18, narrow, 1.5–4 mm, centers dark and margins white.

somewhat elongate, 3.5–8 × 2.5–6 mm;

teeth dark, 7–14, narrow, 1–3 mm.
Aerial stems

dimorphic;

vegetative stems green, branched, 16–50 cm;

hollow center 1/6–1/3 stem diam.

monomorphic, green, branched or occasionally unbranched, 2–70 cm;

hollow center 2/3–4/5 stem diam.
Fertile stems

brown, with stomates, initially unbranched, persisting and becoming branched and green after spore discharge.

Branches

in regular whorls, horizontal to drooping, solid;

ridges 3;

valleys channeled; 1st internode of each branch equal to or longer than subtending stem sheath;

sheath teeth deltate.

mostly from midstem nodes, ascending to spreading, solid;

ridges 4–5;

valleys channeled;

proximal whorls with 1st internode of each branch equal to subtending stem sheath, distal whorls with 1st internode of each branch longer than stem sheath;

sheath teeth attenuate.

Equisetum pratense

Equisetum ×litorale
Phenology Cones maturing in late spring. Cones maturing in early summer, but misshapen spores not shed.
Habitat Meadows, wet woodlands Ditches, stream banks, wet meadows
Elevation 0–2000 m (0–6600 ft) 0–1000 m (0–3300 ft)
Distribution
from FNA
AK; CT; IA; IL; MA; ME; MI; MN; ND; NH; NY; VT; WI; AB; BC; MB; NB; NF; NS; NT; ON; PE; QC; SK; YT; n Eurasia to ne China; Japan in Hokkaido
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
AK; CT; DE; IA; ID; IL; IN; MA; MD; ME; MI; MN; MT; ND; NE; NH; NJ; NY; OH; OR; PA; RI; SD; VA; VT; WA; WI; WV; WY; AB; BC; MB; NB; NF; NS; NT; ON; PE; QC; SK; YT
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Equisetum × litorale is a hybrid between E. arvense and E. fluviatile. It should be expected where the parents coexist. This hybrid has been mistaken for Equisetum palustre; the solid branches with long first internodes and channeled valleys distinguish it from that species.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Source FNA vol. 2. FNA vol. 2.
Parent taxa Equisetaceae > Equisetum > subg. Hippochaete Equisetaceae > Equisetum > subg. Hippochaete
Sibling taxa
E. arvense, E. fluviatile, E. hyemale, E. laevigatum, E. palustre, E. ramosissimum, E. scirpoides, E. sylvaticum, E. telmateia, E. variegatum, E. ×ferrissii, E. ×litorale, E. ×mackaii, E. ×nelsonii
E. arvense, E. fluviatile, E. hyemale, E. laevigatum, E. palustre, E. pratense, E. ramosissimum, E. scirpoides, E. sylvaticum, E. telmateia, E. variegatum, E. ×ferrissii, E. ×mackaii, E. ×nelsonii
Name authority Ehrhart: Hannover. Mag. 22: 138. (1784) Kühlewein: Beitr. Pflanzenk. Russ. Reiches 4: 91. (1845)
Web links 
Unless otherwise noted, all data comes from the online version of the Flora of North America, who have made most of their content available via a Creative Commons license (CC BY 4.0).



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