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Common Plantain

Plantago major

Summary 5

Plantago major (broadleaf plantain, white man's foot, or greater plantain) is a species of flowering plant in the plantain family Plantaginaceae. The plant is native to most of Europe and northern and central Asia, but has widely naturalised elsewhere in the world.

At the Garden 6

Common plantain is a common weed at the Garden and grows readily in lawns, sidewalk cracks, and disturbed areas.

Description 5

Plantago major is an herbaceousperennial plant with a rosette of leaves 15–30 cm in diameter.

Each leaf is oval-shaped, 5–20 cm long and 4–9 cm broad, rarely up to 30 cm long and 17 cm broad, with an acute apex and a smooth margin; there are five to nine conspicuous veins. The flowers are small, greenish-brown with purple stamens, produced in a dense spike 5–15 cm long on top of a stem 13–15 cm tall (rarely to 70 cm tall).

Plantain is wind-pollinated, and propagates primarily by seeds, which are held on the long, narrow spikes which rise well above the foliage. Each plant can produce up to 20,000 seeds, which are very small and oval-shaped, with a bitter taste.

There are three subspecies:

Ecology 5

Plantago major grows in lawns and fields, along roadsides, and in other areas that have been disturbed by humans. It does particularly well in compacted or disturbed soils. It is believed to be one of the first plants to reach North America after European colonisation. Reportedly brought to the Americas by Puritan colonizers, plantain The ability of plantain to survive frequent trampling and colonize compacted soils makes it important for soil rehabilitation. Its roots break up hardpan surfaces, while simultaneously holding together the soil to prevent erosion.

The seeds of plantain are a common contaminant in cereal grain and other crop seeds. As a result, it now has a worldwide distribution as a naturalised species and often a weed.

Sources and Credits

  1. (c) M.M. R, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), http://www.flickr.com/photos/46774986@N02/6010531299
  2. (c) Jon Sullivan, some rights reserved (CC BY), https://www.flickr.com/photos/mollivan_jon/24715512865/
  3. (c) James Mickley, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by James Mickley
  4. anonymous, no known copyright restrictions (public domain), http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Illustration_Plantago_major0.jpg
  5. Adapted by bkmertz from a work by (c) Wikipedia, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA), http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plantago_major
  6. (c) bkmertz, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA)

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