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Taxon  Report  
Equisetum hyemale  L.  ssp. affine  (Engelm.) Calder & Roy L. Taylor
Giant scouring rush
Equisetum hyemale ssp. affine is a fern that is native to California, and also found elsewhere in North America and beyond.
Siskiyou Del Norte Modoc Humboldt Shasta Lassen Trinity Plumas Tehama Butte Mendocino Glenn Sierra Yuba Lake Nevada Colusa Placer Sutter El Dorado Yolo Alpine Napa Sonoma Sacramento Mono Amador Solano Calaveras Tuolumne San Joaquin Marin Contra Costa Alameda Santa Cruz Mariposa Madera San Francisco San Mateo Merced Fresno Stanislaus Santa Clara Inyo San Benito Tulare Kings Monterey San Bernardino San Luis Obispo Kern Santa Barbara Ventura Los Angeles Riverside Orange San Diego Imperial
Parent: Equisetum hyemale
Genus: Equisetum
Family: Equisetaceae  
Category: fern  
PLANTS group:Horsetail
Jepson eFlora section: fern

Toxicity: Do not eat any part of this plant.

Wetlands: Occurs usually in wetlands, occasionally in non wetlands

Habitat: streambanks

Communities: Yellow Pine Forest, Foothill Woodland, Chaparral, Valley Grassland, wetland-riparian, many plant communities

Name Status:
Accepted by JEF
Alternate Names:
OTHEREquisetum hyemale var. affine
JEFEquisetum hyemale var. californicum
JEFEquisetum hyemale var. robustum
PLANTSEquisetum hyemale var. affine
POWOEquisetum praealtum
Information about  Equisetum hyemale ssp. affine from other sources
Nursery availability from CNPLX
This plant is available commercially.
Jepson eFlora

USDA PLANTS Profile (EQHYA)

Photos on Calflora

Photos on CalPhotos

Google Images

Photos on iNaturalist

ID Tips on PlantID.net


Suggested Citation
Calflora: Information on California plants for education, research and conservation, with data contributed by public and private institutions and individuals. [web application]. 2025. The Calflora Database [a non-profit organization]. Available: https://www.calflora.org/   (Accessed: 04/27/2025).