Plantago aristata |
Plantago major |
|
---|---|---|
bottlebrush indianwheat, bract plantain, bristly plantain, large bract plantain |
common plantain, great plantain, nippleseed, plantain majeur |
|
Habit | Annuals; roots taproots, slender. | Perennials, sometimes annuals; caudex absent; roots fibrous, thick. |
Stems | 20–40 mm. |
0–20 mm. |
Leaves | 30–200 × 3–7 mm; blade linear or narrowly lanceolate, margins entire, rarely toothed, veins conspicuous or not, abaxial surface villous, adaxial glabrous or sparsely villous. |
20–150(–400) × 10–120(–170) mm; petiole to 200 mm; blade ovate to cordate-ovate, margins entire or toothed, veins conspicuous, surfaces glabrous or hirsute. |
Scapes | 100–500 mm, hairy, hairs antrorse, long and short. |
50–250(–500) mm, surpassing leaves or not, glabrous or hirsute. |
Spikes | greenish or brownish, 80–150 mm, densely flowered, flowers in whorls or pairs; bracts almost linear, 15–30 mm, length 2–12 times sepals. |
brownish or greenish, (20–)50–300(–400) mm, densely flowered; bracts lanceolate, 0.5–1 mm, length 0.3–0.7 times sepals. |
Flowers | sepals 2.7–3.7 mm; corolla bilaterally symmetric, lobes reflexed, adaxials 1.4–2.3 mm, laterals symmetric, base deeply cordate; stamens 4, connective elongated, apex acute. |
sepals 1.5–2 mm; corolla radially symmetric, lobes reflexed, 0.5–1 mm, base obtuse; stamens 4. |
Fruits | (2–)4–5 mm, dehiscing at middle. |
|
Seeds | 2, 2.5–2.9 mm. |
5–35, 0.5–1 mm. |
2n | = 20. |
= 12. |
Plantago aristata |
Plantago major |
|
Phenology | Flowering spring–fall. | Flowering summer. |
Habitat | Roadsides, pastures, disturbed ground. | Roadsides, trails, stream banks, urban areas, lawns, other disturbed areas. |
Elevation | 0–700 m. (0–2300 ft.) | 0–3000 m. (0–9800 ft.) |
Distribution |
AL; AR; CA; CT; DC; DE; FL; GA; IA; IL; IN; KS; KY; LA; MA; MD; ME; MI; MN; MO; MS; NC; NE; NH; NJ; NM; NY; OH; OK; OR; PA; RI; SC; SD; TN; TX; VA; VT; WA; WI; WV; NS; ON [Introduced in Central America, Europe, Asia]
|
AK; AL; AR; AZ; CA; CO; CT; DC; DE; FL; GA; IA; ID; IL; IN; KS; KY; LA; MA; MD; ME; MI; MN; MO; MS; MT; NC; ND; NE; NH; NJ; NM; NV; NY; OH; OK; OR; PA; RI; SC; SD; TN; TX; UT; VA; VT; WA; WI; WV; WY; AB; BC; MB; NB; NL; NS; NT; ON; PE; QC; SK; YT; SPM; Greenland; Eurasia [Introduced in North America; introduced also in Mexico, Central America, South America, Africa, Pacific Islands, Australia]
|
Discussion | Plantago aristata is similar to P. patagonica; the latter is distinguished by its dense, villous indument. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Subspecies intermedia (Gilibert) Lange is often accepted by European botanists as a separate species, Plantago uliginosa F. W. Schmidt. Observations suggest that plants referable to this taxon may occur in the United States; it has been reported from the New England states (A. Haines 2011). Subspecies intermedia is distinguished by more abundant (11–35) and smaller (0.8–1 mm) seeds, ascending spikes, ovoid fruits, and elliptic or lanceolate leaf blades. Without detailed morphologic and genetic investigations of North American plants similar to the study of European plants by M. Morgan-Richards and K. Wolff (1999), it is not possible to draw any conclusions about the status and distribution of this or any other possible infraspecific taxa of P. major in North America. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Source | FNA vol. 17, p. 284. | FNA vol. 17, p. 289. |
Parent taxa | Plantaginaceae > Plantago | Plantaginaceae > Plantago |
Sibling taxa | ||
Synonyms | P. patagonica var. aristata, P. purshii var. aristata | P. major var. pachyphylla, P. major var. pilgeri, P. major var. scopulorum |
Name authority | Michaux: Fl. Bor.-Amer. 1: 95. (1803) | Linnaeus: Sp. Pl. 1: 112. (1753) |
Web links |
|
|