Plantago australis |
Plantago pusilla |
|
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Mexican plantain |
dwarf plantain, little plantain, woolly indianwheat, woolly plantain |
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Habit | Perennials; caudex glabrous; roots fibrous, stout. | Annuals; roots taproots, slender. |
Stems | 0–10 mm. |
0–5 mm. |
Leaves | 40–350 × 6–77 mm; blade elliptic to narrowly elliptic, margins entire, veins conspicuous, surfaces pilose, rarely glabrate, adaxial surface hairs not floccose, less than 2 mm long, more than 0.03 mm wide. |
20–70 × 1–2 mm; blade linear, margins entire, sometimes toothed, veins conspicuous or not, surfaces hairy or glabrous. |
Scapes | 30–560 mm, hairy, hairs antrorse, short. |
15–60 mm, hairy, sometimes glabrous. |
Spikes | greenish or brownish, 100–1000 mm, densely flowered; bracts narrowly triangular, 1.6–4.2 mm, length 0.8–1.5 times sepals. |
greenish or brownish, 20–100 mm, loosely or densely flowered; bracts triangular-ovate, 1.5–2 mm, length 0.9–1.1 times sepals. |
Flowers | sepals 2–2.5 mm; corolla radially symmetric, lobes erect, forming a beak, 2–2.8 mm, base obtuse; stamens 4. |
sepals 1.5–2 mm; corolla radially symmetric, lobes erect, forming a beak, 0.5 mm, base obtuse; stamens 2. |
Seeds | 3, 1.2–2.2 mm. |
4, 0.8–1.3 mm. |
2n | = 24. |
= 12. |
Plantago australis |
Plantago pusilla |
|
Phenology | Flowering summer. | Flowering spring–early summer. |
Habitat | Open places. | Dry to moist, sandy, alluvial soils. |
Elevation | 0–1000 m. [0–3300 ft.] | 0–200 m. [0–700 ft.] |
Distribution |
AZ; Mexico; Central America; South America
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AL; AR; CA; CT; DC; DE; FL; GA; IL; IN; KS; KY; LA; MA; MD; MO; MS; NC; NJ; NY; OK; OR; PA; RI; SC; TN; TX; VA; WA
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Discussion | Plantago australis occurs in Cochise, Coconino, and Pima counties. Plantago australis is most diverse in South America, where as many as 16 subspecies (K. Rahn 1974) may be recognized. Plants from California identified as P. hirtella are most likely P. subnuda. However, since the most important distinguishing character of P. australis is the absence of the developed taproot (which is fragile and often broken in herbarium specimens), all these samples require careful examination. Further research is needed also to clarify the circumscriptions of P. australis and P. subnuda. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Plantago pusilla is considered to be introduced in Oregon and Washington, and possibly in California. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Source | FNA vol. 17, p. 284. | FNA vol. 17, p. 291. |
Parent taxa | ||
Sibling taxa | ||
Synonyms | P. australis subsp. hirtella, P. hirtella, P. hirtella var. galeottiana, P. hirtella var. mollior | P. hybrida, P. pusilla var. major |
Name authority | Lamarck: in J. Lamarck and J. L. M. Poiret, Tabl. Encycl. 1: 339. (1792) | Nuttall: Gen. N. Amer. Pl. 1: 100. (1818) |
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