jamesp
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Post by jamesp on Apr 15, 2016 19:36:36 GMT -5
3 weeks into plant season and they are cleaning out the horsetail plants for a popular hedge trend. Growing it in water makes very healthy plants. Looks like a bigger crop for next year. A living fossil and of all things is a fern. Used to get 10 inches in diameter back in the days of the dinosaur. This stock collected from a river bank in British Columbia. Lots of variations. Typical hedge:  stock being depleted  still have this half pan full  Friday afternoon refill, stopped for Thai dinner  Half gallon pots. Clients are marking it up almost 400%. |
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Fossilman
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Member since January 2009
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Post by Fossilman on Apr 15, 2016 20:35:20 GMT -5
Hey this plant grows wild in Montana,I remember it,as a kid...............Yes near the swamps and rivers..........
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Post by rockpickerforever on Apr 15, 2016 21:43:12 GMT -5
3 weeks into plant season and they are cleaning out the horsetail plants for a popular hedge trend. Growing it in water makes very healthy plants. Looks like a bigger crop for next year. stock being depleted Sounds like a good problem to have! Perhaps James is selling himself short? Ya need to at least double your price per pot! Well, maybe next year. |
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quartz
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breakin' rocks in the hot sun
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Post by quartz on Apr 15, 2016 22:30:36 GMT -5
Here, that stuff is a darn hard to kill weed, think you could sell anything to everyone there.
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Post by Pat on Apr 15, 2016 22:55:10 GMT -5
Attractive plant. Does it need s lot of water? Around here we don't want thirsty plants ----- except for our blackberry crop.
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Post by vegasjames on Apr 16, 2016 0:34:53 GMT -5
Attractive plant. Does it need s lot of water? Around here we don't want thirsty plants ----- except for our blackberry crop. They are water plants often growing in shallow water or near river banks. Will grow in areas such as in the forest where it gets watered frequently. They need very sandy soil for silica. Horsetail (scouring rush, snake grass, shavegrass) is the second highest herbal source of silica next to bamboo. I like giant horsetail grass. It is very dark green and grows to about 6 feet. Rarely ever see it growing though. |
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jamesp
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Post by jamesp on Apr 16, 2016 0:44:51 GMT -5
Hey this plant grows wild in Montana,I remember it,as a kid...............Yes near the swamps and rivers.......... It thrives in the NW. Big spreads of it along rivers up there. |
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jamesp
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Post by jamesp on Apr 16, 2016 0:47:26 GMT -5
Had people come to the farm. Must sell it at a higher retail price so I do not under cut my retail customers Jean. rockpickerforever |
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jamesp
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Post by jamesp on Apr 16, 2016 0:50:19 GMT -5
Here, that stuff is a darn hard to kill weed, think you could sell anything to everyone there. Discovered skunk cabbage when out your way. another pest plant. Could sell it like crazy here, but it does not grow here. Believe, we tried. Floating water hyacinth is the scourge of Florida, #1 best seller up here in Atlanta. Different sells. |
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jamesp
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Post by jamesp on Apr 16, 2016 0:54:46 GMT -5
Attractive plant. Does it need s lot of water? Around here we don't want thirsty plants ----- except for our blackberry crop. This variety does need water Pat. Some horsetail does better in dry ground. One variety gets 4 inches tall and does well in dry ground. Maybe too hot in San Jose though. Ancient varieties grew over 100 feet tall; I'll send you one. |
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jamesp
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Member since October 2012
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Post by jamesp on Apr 16, 2016 1:00:54 GMT -5
Attractive plant. Does it need s lot of water? Around here we don't want thirsty plants ----- except for our blackberry crop. They are water plants often growing in shallow water or near river banks. Will grow in areas such as in the forest where it gets watered frequently. They need very sandy soil for silica. Horsetail (scouring rush, snake grass, shavegrass) is the second highest herbal source of silica next to bamboo. I like giant horsetail grass. It is very dark green and grows to about 6 feet. Rarely ever see it growing though. and it's a fern James. |
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Post by vegasjames on Apr 16, 2016 1:14:29 GMT -5
Here, that stuff is a darn hard to kill weed, think you could sell anything to everyone there. Discovered skunk cabbage when out your way. another pest plant. Could sell it like crazy here, but it does not grow here. Believe, we tried. Floating water hyacinth is the scourge of Florida, #1 best seller up here in Atlanta. Different sells. Skunk cabbage produces some pretty big leaves. |
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Post by vegasjames on Apr 16, 2016 1:21:28 GMT -5
They are water plants often growing in shallow water or near river banks. Will grow in areas such as in the forest where it gets watered frequently. They need very sandy soil for silica. Horsetail (scouring rush, snake grass, shavegrass) is the second highest herbal source of silica next to bamboo. I like giant horsetail grass. It is very dark green and grows to about 6 feet. Rarely ever see it growing though. and it's a fern James. Yes, or more specifically closely related. Some more trivia. The plant is very toxic when fresh since it contains thiaminase. Even when dried and aged to destroy the thiaminase it still has a strong blood vessel constricting effect so I avoid it. The shorter version you were referring two would be sterile stem horsetail. Bottle brush is also a type that will grow in drier areas. Although I have seen regular horsetail growing in the forest away from water sources in both Zion Canyon, Utah and Mt. Rose near Reno, Nevada. The horsetail on the rail to kolab Arch in Zion is actually read from all the iron oxide it absorbs from the soil. |
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Post by Jugglerguy on Apr 16, 2016 6:34:06 GMT -5
Do you warn people that it's impossible to kill that stuff? I hate that plant, but I hate another type much more. They grow wild in my yard and I've never figured out how to kill it. Here's the one I have the most lrouble with:  I once tried digging up about a square yard of it. The roots were unbelievable. I've read that they can go as far as twenty feet down. Digging it was a huge mistake, because it just divided all the plants and they came up thicker than ever. Round Up doesn't phase it, |
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jamesp
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Post by jamesp on Apr 16, 2016 8:59:28 GMT -5
Yes, or more specifically closely related. Some more trivia. The plant is very toxic when fresh since it contains thiaminase. Even when dried and aged to destroy the thiaminase it still has a strong blood vessel constricting effect so I avoid it. The shorter version you were referring two would be sterile stem horsetail. Bottle brush is also a type that will grow in drier areas. Although I have seen regular horsetail growing in the forest away from water sources in both Zion Canyon, Utah and Mt. Rose near Reno, Nevada. The horsetail on the rail to kolab Arch in Zion is actually read from all the iron oxide it absorbs from the soil. Odd that you mention iron James, Birmingham has iron ore and fossilized horsetail is contained in the ore. Some of the fossils are chunks that display diameters up to 10-12 inches. Pretty sure it grew in very iron rich soil. Horsetail may have a lot to do with coal fields, may have been a massive organic soil builder. As is native bamboo. Silica is a strange component of horsetail. Like bamboo you mentioned. Strange mineral for a plant to draw. Like sterile as it gets. Never know what a plant is capable of. Cut lots of bamboo with chain saw here. Not sure if it is the silica or the thin hard wood that dulls the blade so fast. a slow wood to rot, could be the silica. |
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jamesp
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Post by jamesp on Apr 16, 2016 9:14:08 GMT -5
Do you warn people that it's impossible to kill that stuff? I hate that plant, but I hate another type much more. They grow wild in my yard and I've never figured out how to kill it. Here's the one I have the most lrouble with: I once tried digging up about a square yard of it. The roots were unbelievable. I've read that they can go as far as twenty feet down. Digging it was a huge mistake, because it just divided all the plants and they came up thicker than ever. Round Up doesn't phase it, Try mixing it double or triple strength and spraying it during the hottest and driest time of the year. Round Up much more effective on dry plants. And let it grow before spraying, Round Up kills best thru the new growth. If it is a small area cover it with a dark tarp ? I think the picture is horsetail Rob. Some varieties have stems like that. The tip looks like the spore pod of horsetail, dead ringer for horsetail. From images, look familiar ?    If so, you have a horsetail called arvense. Mowing it close to the ground constantly is probably best way to eliminate. Probably not feasible. www.gardenguides.com/94804-rid-field-horsetail.htmlUnfortunately, when any horsetail is happy it is a nuisance. The hot dry summers helps to kill most of them here. |
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grayfingers
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Post by grayfingers on Apr 16, 2016 9:35:18 GMT -5
We have a form of this grass here in Montana that grows in the mountains in sandy but moist soil. Only gets a couple feet high. Grew up calling it snake grass. The pioneers here used it as a scouring pad for pots and pans. We used to pull it apart and used for straw to drink from streams while hiking.. Have read the local Indians used it as an herbal remedy as well.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Apr 16, 2016 11:25:06 GMT -5
Lol, I love equisitum or whatever it's called now
"Sedges have edges, and rushes are round. Grasses have nodes from the top to the ground."
effing stuck in my head, that little diddy is!
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jamesp
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Post by jamesp on Apr 16, 2016 15:13:20 GMT -5
We have a form of this grass here in Montana that grows in the mountains in sandy but moist soil. Only gets a couple feet high. Grew up calling it snake grass. The pioneers here used it as a scouring pad for pots and pans. We used to pull it apart and used for straw to drink from streams while hiking.. Have read the local Indians used it as an herbal remedy as well. Wiki refers to the name Snake grass. Over a dozen pure varieties and that many more crosses. Wiki gives a nice exposition. It is a look back into fossil plant mechanisms. Used as an abrasive in Japan to finish wood better than any sandpaper so it says. High tech compounds, some only found in horsetail. Rice hulls, bamboo and horsetail fond of silica. Frightening to consider Native man's testing process. "Let's watch Mikey eat it and see what happens" No telling how many livers and kidneys were cooked. Even modern man has no concept of what effects complex organic chemicals are going to have on the complex human body. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Equisetum |
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jamesp
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Post by jamesp on Apr 16, 2016 15:15:55 GMT -5
Lol, I love equisitum or whatever it's called now "Sedges have edges, and rushes are round. Grasses have nodes from the top to the ground." oopsing stuck in my head, that little diddy is! Gotta memorize that simple synopsis. "Sedges have edges, rushes are round. Grasses have nodes from the top to the ground." Not the first time you have quoted that. |
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