Can anyone identify this weed and help me get rid?

[NanooCov]

Our garden has always (since we moved in 4 years ago) had a problem with this weed. It spreads like wildfire and is difficult to pull up (snaps level with soil). We had a lot of work done to the garden last autumn - new lawn, new play area for kids with membrane and play bark, new patio and path, etc. - and while it is better than before, the bloody stuff is coming back. Even pushing its way through the membrane under the bark. I think I've seen it called prairie grass before but anything online doesn't look like it (that I've been able to find anyway). Comes up with its "needles" tightly closed in looking like a kind of smooth shoot. Then when the "needles" unfurl it looks like tiny trees. It can get very tall if not pulled or cut back and seems to be able to push its way through lawn, shingle and membrane/bark. Any ideas what it is and how to get rid (short of napalm)? Thanks in advance.

I hate this weed. I thought it was called horse tail. They are just sprouting now and was told you have to break the waxy coating before you spray with weed killer.

Im hoping an expert comes along as i have same problem.

Actually might be marestail.

It's mare's tail.

It's a very persistent bugger. Keep pulling it out.

I managed to rid my last garden of this but took dedication!
The best way I found was to buy ready made wall paper paste and strong glyphosate liquid (brown in quite a small plastic bottle - like for stumps etc)
Mix wallpaper paste in jar with glyphosate and paint it on
It became a little ritual most evenings and it worked v well - only a handful of spikes the next year and did the same to those
It also works in beds - just flatten the mares tail a bit, hold it down from touching other plants if needed with a stone or whatever
Good luck!

Thanks all - at least I can now put a name to the bugger.

@abitoflight I'm assuming I can't use that approach on the lawn as it'll kill my nice new turf? Although with the lawn it's not too much of an issue as it gets chopped with the mower. But of course will always just come back. Maybe I need to get the other half to pull it before mowing?

Horsetail. It's got incredibly deep roots and it's likely that the preparatory groundwork done in your garden would have made it worse. If you keep lopping the tops off it will weaken eventually.

It would depend on how much is coming through the lawn and painting may be impractical as if it is same height as grass, there won't be any higher part you could paint to avoid touching the grass
My neighbour just kept pulling it up and eventually it weakens. Maybe keeping the grass v short for a season would weaken it similarly with mowing? The roots can go down metres but stopping it from photosynthesising should weaken it

Ah yes ,another weed on my bingo card .

There's a thread here www.mumsnet.com/Talk/gardening/3229055-horsetail-fighting-a-losing-battle

It’s a prehistoric pine tree...horsetail where I come from. Take off the rocks and pull them up by the connecting roots, keep pulling and keep digging over and over and over again. Don’t give up.

Kurtail gold + adjuvant from Progreen. One treatment will finish the job. A cheap knapsack sprayer under £20 will apply well.

The RHS have a very helpful page on Horesetail and they give some good tips

"horsetail is persistent, and several [chemical] applications – possibly over a number of years – may be necessary to completely eradicate the problem."

www.rhs.org.uk/advice/profile?PID=257