Plantago lanceolata (English plantain)

Plantago lanceolata L.

Plantago altissima auct. non L.

Plantago lanceolata L. var. sphaerostachya Mert. & W.D.J. Koch

English plantain, ribwort plantain

Kingdom	Plantae	Plants, but not fungi, lichens, or algae
Subkingdom	Tracheobionta	Vascular plants—plants with a “circulatory system” for delivering water and nutrients
Division	Magnoliophyta	Flowering plants, also known as angiosperms
Class	Magnoliopsida	Dicotyledons—plants with two initial seed leaves
Subclass	Asteridae	A large class that encompasses asters
Order	Lamiales	Aromatic herbs and shrubs, including lavender, lilac, olive, jasmine, ash, teak, snapdragon, sesame, psyllium, garden sage, mint, basil, and rosemary
Family	Plantaginaceae	Plantains
Genus	Plantago	From Latin plantago, “footprint,” since plantains popped up where European settlers walked
Species	lanceolata	“Lance-like”—usually a reference to leaf shape, probably a reference to the fruits in this case

About plant names...

English plantain is a European native, found in Britain, from Iceland south and east to Spain, and northern and central Asia. It is naturalized in North America, and common in lawns, as well as prairies, roadsides, and plains.

Plants: Plants are 6-24" (15-60 cm) tall, with bare, ridged stems.

Leaves: Leaves are in the form of a basal rosette, with ascending, smooth-edged, narrowly elliptic or narrowly oval leaves 4-16" (10-40 cm) long. Leaves have three or more parallel nerves.

Flowers: An oval structure ½-3" (1.3-7.6 cm) tall atop each stem is festooned with tiny white flowers ⅛" (3.2 mm) in size. The flowers form a ring of diminutive blooms that begins at the bottom of the oval and works upward, appearing from Apr-Aug.

Fruits: Fruits are ¹/₁₆-⅛" (3-4 mm) in size, splitting open when dry.

Edibility: Young leaves are edible raw or cooked, though bitter and very fibrous. Seeds may be ground and added to flour.

Online References:

Plantago lanceolata at Illinois Wildflowers

Plantago lanceolata on the New England Wildflower Society’s GoBotany site

Plantago lanceolata on www.wildscreen.org

Plantago lanceolata on Plants for a Future, a resource and information centre for edible and otherwise useful plants

References:

Clemants, Steven; Gracie, Carol, Wildflowers in the Field and Forest, Oxford University Press, 2006, p. 360