Invasiveness Assessment - Marsh horsetail (Equisetum paulstre) in Victoria (Nox)

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Plant invasiveness is determined by evaluating a plant’s biological and ecological characteristics against criteria that encompass establishment requirements, growth rate and competitive ability, methods of reproduction, and dispersal mechanisms.

Each characteristic, or criterion, is assessed against a list of intensity ratings. Depending upon information found, a rating of Low, Medium Low, Medium High or High is assigned to that criterion. Where no data is available to answer a criterion, a rating of medium (M) is applied. A description of the invasiveness criteria and intensity ratings used in this process can be viewed here.

The following table provides information on the invasiveness of Marsh horsetail.

A more detailed description of the methodology of the Victorian Weed Risk Assessment (WRA) method can be viewed below:

Victorian Weed Risk Assessment (WRA) method (PDF - 630 KB)
Victorian Weed Risk Assessment (WRA) method (DOC - 1 MB)
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Common Name: Marsh horsetail
Scientific name: Equisetum paulstre

Question	Comments	Reference	Rating
Establishment
Germination requirements?	Reproduces mostly by rhizomes at any time in moist environments.	Rock (1999)	H
Establishment requirements?	Can establish under moderate canopy cover as occurs in Boreal forest & woods.	Looman & Best (1979) Clapham et al (1952)	MH
How much disturbance is required?	Occurs in well established pastures (in Hungary) and cultivated fields (in Finland).	CAB Abstracts	MH
Growth/Competitive
Life form?	Semi-aquatic; emergent.	Hauke (1978) USGS database (1999)	H
Allelopathic properties?	None described.		L
Tolerates herb pressure?	Not preferred species of most animals. Capable of rhizome production under mod herbivory pressure.	CAB Abstracts	MH
Normal growth rate?	Other semi aquatic herbs also display rapid growth & reproduce sexually and asexually (P&C 1992).		MH
Stress tolerance to frost, drought, w/logg, sal. etc?	Tolerance to waterlogging (common in wet places), fire (rhizome), frost (occurs in Iceland & Alaska).	Muenscher (1955) Frohne & Pfander (1983) Clapham et al (1952)	MH
Reproduction
Reproductive system	Reproduces by spores (sexually) & rhizomes (vegetatively).	Muenscher (1955)	H
Number of propagules produced?	Propagule number assumed similar to Equisetum Arvense: (Propagule no. estimated): 10 spore – bearing sporangia/strobilus x well over 200 spores/sporangia = >2,000 spores/plant (P&C 1992).		H
Propagule longevity?	Spores short-lived.	Rook (1999)	L
Reproductive period?	Stems annual, however rhizomes persistent.	Rook (1999) USGS database (1999)	H
Time to reproductive maturity?	Assumed to be same as E. arvense, as stems annual (&fertile stems appear before sterile stems).	Looman & Best (1979) P&C	H
Dispersal
Number of mechanisms?	Dispersal mechanisms of Equisetum paulstre assumed to be similar to E. arvense due to the biological & habitat similarities between the species. “Cultivation (spores of this sp. Noted to be between 30-45 mm in diameter.	Hauke (1978)	H
How far do they disperse?	Most long distance spread is by machinery & equipment carrying rhizome fragment & tubers. Such mechanisms are likely to spread many propagules 200-1,000 m. Spores carries by wind & water could also be dispersed such distances.		MH

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