Equisetum giganteum
Equisetum giganteum | |
---|---|
Scientific classification | |
Kingdom: | Plantae |
Clade: | Tracheophytes |
Division: | Polypodiophyta |
Class: | Polypodiopsida |
Subclass: | Equisetidae |
Order: | Equisetales |
Family: | Equisetaceae |
Genus: | Equisetum |
Subgenus: | |
Species: | E. giganteum
|
Binomial name | |
Equisetum giganteum | |
Synonyms[1] | |
|
Equisetum giganteum, with the common name southern giant horsetail, is a species of horsetail native to South America and Central America, from central Chile east to Brazil and north to southern Mexico.
Description[]
It is one of the largest horsetails, growing 2–5 metres (6.6–16.4 ft) tall, exceeded only by the closely allied Equisetum myriochaetum (up to 8 metres (26 ft) relying on surrounding plants' support). The stems are the stoutest of any horsetail, 1–2 cm diameter (up to 3.5 cm (1.33 inches) in diameter in some populations),[2] and bear numerous whorls of very slender branches; these branches are not further branched, but some terminate in spore cones. Unlike some other horsetails, it does not have separate photosynthetic sterile and non-photosynthetic spore-bearing stems.
Populations from northern Chile with very stout stems up to 3.5 cm diameter have sometimes been treated as a separate species Equisetum xylochaetum,[3] but this is not widely regarded as distinct.
References[]
- ^ Tropicos.org, retrieved 5 January 2016
- ^ Husby, Chad (<not recorded>). "How large Can Giant Equisetum Become?". Retrieved August 25, 2004. Check date values in:
|date=
(help) - ^ Equisetum xylochaetum at Flora Brasiliensis online
External links[]
- Media related to Equisetum giganteum at Wikimedia Commons
- fiu.edu: Giant Horsetails
- (in Portuguese) Lorenzi, H. & Souza, M. S. (2001). Plantas Ornamentais no Brasil: arbustivas, herbáceas e trepadeiras. Online ISBN 85-86714-12-7
- Equisetum
- Ferns of the Americas
- Flora of Central America
- Flora of South America
- Flora of Brazil
- Flora of Chile
- Flora of Colombia
- Flora of Costa Rica
- Flora of Ecuador
- Flora of Panama
- Flora of Mexico
- Flora of Venezuela
- Flora of the Yucatán Peninsula
- Plants described in 1759
- Garden plants of Central America
- Garden plants of South America
- Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus