3 Amazing Uses of Horsetail

Horsetail, or equisetum, as it is known by its Latin name, is a very ancient and powerful plant that can easily be found growing wild all throughout northern U.S. Horsetail is the only surviving genus of a prehistoric plant family dating back to 350 million years ago. They are the reason we have coal! Also intriguing is that they propagate by spores rather than seeds.

Here in southern Oregon, horsetail grow in abundance in wetland areas of the forest and along roadside ditches.

In just an hour, we collected a huge bunch...way more than I actually needed! So I made the most of our harvest and used them in three ways:

#1 Natural dye

My original intention when we collected the horsetail was to use them for dye, especially because it creates a rare color. As you can see, it yields a beautiful peach pink. In the natural dye world, yellow is the most common and abundant color, so anything not yellow is exciting and I'm really thrilled with this result. As it turns out, it's the minerals in horsetail that create this special hue.

#2 Hair tonic

The same mineral content that makes for a great natural dye color is also great for our health. Have you noticed that lots of fancy conditioners advertise "silica" in their ingredients for strengthening hair and prevent hair loss? Well, you can you get the same thing from horsetail.

According to Mountain Rose Herbs, "Horsetail is possibly the most abundant source of silica in the plant kingdom, so much in fact that the herb can be used for polishing metal. It got the name 'scouring rush' from this very application. It has had other uses during the ages including as an ingredient in shampoos, skincare products, and in dietary supplements. The German E commission describes its use for urinary tract problems and as a diuretic.”

After boiling down the horsetail for dye, I saved a portion of the liquid in a jar and put it in the refrigerator to keep fresh. Every time I take a bath or shower, I pour about 1 cup of the horsetail tonic onto my hair and then wrap my head in a towel until it naturally dries. It works extremely well. Conditioners often make my scalp greasy after a few days (I wash my hair only once a week), but horsetail keeps my hair shiny, strong, and smooth without being oily!

@sagescrub also regularly adds horsetail into his daily infusion routine specifically for its health benefits - strengthening bones and lubricating joints. For more on its medicinal uses, check out: http://www.susunweed.com/herbal_ezine/february04/menopausal.htm

*As we collected this horsetail in the summer when its silica content is the highest, it's better to use this externally. For internal use, herbalists recommend horsetail collected in the spring.

#3 Adding minerals to our soil + mulch

Silica is also sought after by cannabis growers and high-yield gardeners to strengthen their plants. This is often bought in expensive fertilizers rather than simply made from natural materials growing abundantly all around us. After I finished dyeing, I let the bath cool and then poured the remainder of the horsetail right into the garden.

Once again, mother nature proves, everything we need is already right here in front of us! Our ancestors certainly knew this and we can relearn and rewild ourselves again too!