Horsetails for Class Polypodiopsida- MyAssignmenthelp.com

Question: Why are Horsetails (Equisetum spp.) also known as scouring rushes? Answer: Horsetails belong to the genus Equisetaceae. Horsetails are plants belong to the group of fern plants, which are family plants that reproduce using spores instead of seeds. The name horsetails came about because the branched species looks like the tail of a horse. In addition, Equisetum is a Latin word relating to a horse (Labun et al. 2013). Horsetails are known as scouring rush becomes in the ancient times they were used in scouring or cleaning metal items like cooking pots. Horsetails stems contain the abrasive silicates making it tough and good for scouring metallic surfaces. The other morphological characteristics that contribute to the fact that the plants are referred to, as the scouring rush is the fact that the plants have a rush-like appearance. Horsetail steps are very rough and long lasting, therefore good for cleaning metal surfaces. Applications and Uses of Class Polypodiopsida Class polypodiopsida is sometimes known as the true ferns. This is because they have the megaphylls and large fronds with branching networks of veins. Unlike the whisk ferns, they also have true roots with the ability to penetrate deep into the soil to derive water. Like most of the ferns, polypodiopsida have no major economic use or applications. However, some few communities have used the plants for a long time as food. The succulent leaves and roots provide nutrition. In the recent times, polypodiopsida ferns are being used for remediating contaminated soil. Soil contaminated with industrial waste, whereby there is no other way of cleaning, ferns are planted. It is due to this remediating feature that polypodiopsida ferns are becoming the subject of research for their ability to remove chemical pollutants from the contaminated soil. Besides, the plant looks beautiful and attractive. Thus, people would plant in their compounds due to this fact. Hence, polypodiopsida ferns are also used for ornamental purposes. In some few occasions, the plant is used for medication purposes (Prajapati et al. 2003). Traditional societies used to pick its roots and some other parts to heal ailments. References Labun, P., Grulova, D., Salamon, I., ere?, F. (2013). Calculating the silicon in horsetail (Equisetum arvense L.) during the vegetation season. Food and Nutrition Sciences, 4(05), 510. Prajapati, N. D., Purohit, S. S., Sharma, A. K., Kumar, T. (2003). Medicinal plants. Agrobios published company, 3rd edition, India, 353.