A Tiny Ancient Forest

A forest of Horse Tails (Equisetum arvense) - a strange fern now the only surviving member of a group of ferns which evolved during the Jurassic period. The tips of each stem carry spores in structures which look like tiny cones.

Despite being a living fossil this plant is extremely useful - the stems which are coated in silicates can be used for scouring metal items. The Greeks and Romans used horsetail as a diuretic and to stop bleeding.