Burke: Plantago pusilla vs. Plantago lanceolata

	Plantago pusilla	Plantago lanceolata
	dwarf plantain	English plantain
Habit		Fibrous-rooted perennial from a short, stout, woody base, tan-woolly at the crown, the several scapes 1.5-6 dm. tall, grooved and ridged.
Leaves		Leaves all basal, woolly to glabrous, 3- to several-nerved, lance-elliptic, acute, 10-40 cm. long and 1-4 cm. wide.
Flowers		Inflorescence a dense, bracteate, cylindric spike, 1.5-8 cm. long and 1 cm. wide; bracts thin, ovate, acuminate; the 4 sepals with strong mid-veins, the outer two united, with separate mid-veins; corolla lobes 4, 2-2.5 mm. long, spreading or reflexed; stamens 4, exerted; ovary superior, 2-celled.
Fruits		Capsule 3-4 mm. long

	Plantago pusilla	Plantago lanceolata
Flowering time	April-June	April-August
Habitat	Dry to moist, sandy areas at low elevations.	Roadsides, fields, and other disturbed, open areas.
Distribution	Occurring historically in the Columbia River Gorge in Washington; British Columbia to California, aslo in the south-central U.S. and eastern North America. [WildflowerSearch map]	Occuring on both sides of the Cascades crest in Washington; Alaska to California, east across North America to the Atlantic Coast; cosmopolitan. [WildflowerSearch map] [BONAP county map]
Origin	Introduced from eastern North America	Introduced from Europe
Conservation status	Not of concern	Not of concern
Sibling taxa	P. arenaria, P. coronopus, P. elongata, P. lanceolata, P. macrocarpa, P. major, P. maritima, P. patagonica, P. subnuda	P. arenaria, P. coronopus, P. elongata, P. macrocarpa, P. major, P. maritima, P. patagonica, P. pusilla, P. subnuda
Web links	Local floras: CA, OR, WA Local Web sites: CalFlora, CalPhotos, Flora NW, PNW Herbaria WildflowerSearch iNaturalist (observations) USDA Plants Database LBJ Wildflower Center SEINet Plants of the World Online Encyclopedia of Life Wikipedia Google Image Search	Local floras: BC, CA, OR, WA Local Web sites: CalFlora, CalPhotos, Flora NW, PNW Herbaria, Turner Photog. WildflowerSearch iNaturalist (observations) USDA Plants Database LBJ Wildflower Center SEINet Plants of the World Online Encyclopedia of Life Wikipedia Google Image Search

Plantago pusilla

Plantago lanceolata

dwarf plantain

English plantain

Habit

Fibrous-rooted perennial from a short, stout, woody base, tan-woolly at the crown, the several scapes 1.5-6 dm. tall, grooved and ridged.

Leaves

Leaves all basal, woolly to glabrous, 3- to several-nerved, lance-elliptic, acute, 10-40 cm. long and 1-4 cm. wide.

Flowers

Inflorescence a dense, bracteate, cylindric spike, 1.5-8 cm. long and 1 cm. wide;

bracts thin, ovate, acuminate; the 4 sepals with strong mid-veins, the outer two united, with separate mid-veins;

corolla lobes 4, 2-2.5 mm. long, spreading or reflexed;

stamens 4, exerted;

ovary superior, 2-celled.

Fruits

Capsule 3-4 mm. long

Plantago pusilla

Plantago lanceolata

Flowering time

April-June

April-August

Habitat

Dry to moist, sandy areas at low elevations.

Roadsides, fields, and other disturbed, open areas.

Distribution

Occurring historically in the Columbia River Gorge in Washington; British Columbia to California, aslo in the south-central U.S. and eastern North America.

[WildflowerSearch map]