If you take a walk through a wetland area or spend much time exploring area trails and parks, you are sure to come across an almost leafless hollow-stemmed plant known as scouring rush or rough horsetail (Latin Equisetum hyemale). Scouring rush is a native plant with a long history and is a good addition to stream banks, pond edges, and water, bog, Japanese and container gardens.

Scouring rush prefers part to full sun and forms dense colonies once established. Because it is a semi-aggressive spreader, it should only be planted where it can be contained or allowed to naturalize. For water and bog gardens, keep it in a large container and set it in deep water if possible.

The plant is characterized by its deep green, hollow, jointed stems. They are the diameter of a pencil or smaller and lack branches or flowers but have tiny leaves ringing the joints in spring. Leaves only last a few months, but black circles also ring each joint along the stem and remain through the seasons. Scouring rush remains green through most Kansas winters, so it can also add to the winter interest of a garden. Stems typically grow to about three feet tall.

Scouring rush is a type of equisetum. It and other equisetums are one of the few classes of plants that reproduce by spores rather than seeds. The genus, or group of Equisetum species, is considered to be a “living fossil,” because it so closely resembles the Equisetum that existed in prehistoric eras. Based on molecular dating and fossil records, botanists estimate Equisetum to have appeared anywhere between 65 million and 350 million years ago.

The name scouring rush comes from the silica-impregnated ridges that run the length of the stems and make the plant useful for scouring. Early U.S. settlers used scouring rush stems to clean and polish dishes. In Japan, scouring rush is a traditional polishing material for fine woodcraft. By tradition, it is boiled and dried before use and works like a very fine sandpaper.

The name rough horsetail also refers to the ridges on this species, while horsetail is a common name given to many Equisetums. It likely arose because some of the other equisetums have branches making them somewhat resemble a horse’s tail. Horsetail is sometimes confused with mare’s tail, but the common name mare’s tail more typically refers to a completely different plant (Conyza canadensis).

Scouring rush was used by some Native Americans tribes for medicinal purposes and is still used in homeopathic remedies today. Stems are also used to shape reeds of reed instruments.

— Jennifer Smith is a former horticulture extension agent for K-State Research and Extension and horticulturist for Lawrence Parks and Recreation. She is the host of “The Garden Show.” Send your gardening questions and feedback to features@ljworld.com.