At first Equisetum twins
don’t look alike
One conical horsetail head rises
            t e l e s c o p i c a l l y
on a pinky beige
segmented stalk
the other like a slim green bottle brush
as they have done for millennia 

The conical head rises simply
to send out spores
in the few days it is above ground
before it lays back down in earth’s bed
The brush lives on through summer
grows its bristles way out
into green bushy filaments 

Humble time travelling talismans
ancient plants of marvel
sources of silicon, selenium silica
calcium and more
such a powerful bone helper
diuretic
you must take care 

Last species of their genus
Scouring Rush are living fossils
               going back
       oh
one or three hundred
      million
      years