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California plantain, dotseed plantain, erect dwarf plantain

blackseed plantain, plantain de Rugel, Rugel's plantain

Habit Annuals; roots taproots, slender. Perennials, sometimes annuals; caudex absent; roots fibrous, thick.
Stems

0–10 mm.

0–20 mm.

Leaves

50–120 × 1–4 mm;

blade linear, margins entire or toothed, veins conspicuous or not, surfaces villous or lanate, rarely glabrate.

20–150 × 10–120 mm;

petiole to 200 mm;

blade ovate to cordate-ovate, margins entire or toothed, veins conspicuous, surfaces glabrous or hirsute.

Scapes

200–1500 mm, hairy, hairs antrorse, long and short.

50–250 mm, glabrous or hirsute.

Spikes

greenish or brownish, 70–150 mm, densely flowered, flowers in whorls or pairs;

bracts ovate, 1–2 mm, length 0.3–0.8 times sepals.

brownish or greenish, 50–300 mm, densely or loosely flowered;

bracts narrowly lanceolate, 2 mm, length 1–1.2 times sepals.

Flowers

sepals 2.5–3.4 mm;

corolla radially symmetric, lobes reflexed, 2–2.7 mm, base obtuse or slightly 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

4–6(–8) mm, dehiscing proximal to middle.

Seeds

2, 2.1–2.9 mm.

4 or 5(–8), 1.5–2 mm.

2n

= 20.

= 24.

Plantago erecta

Plantago rugelii

Phenology Flowering spring. Flowering summer.
Habitat Dunes, grassy hills and flats, clearings in woods. Open woods, meadows, pastures, waste places.
Elevation -50–1400 m. (-200–4600 ft.) 0–2000 m. (0–6600 ft.)
Distribution
from FNA
CA; OR; Mexico (Baja California)
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
AL; AR; CT; DC; DE; FL; GA; IA; IL; IN; KS; KY; LA; MA; MD; ME; MI; MN; MO; MS; MT; NC; ND; NE; NH; NJ; NY; OH; OK; PA; RI; SC; SD; TN; TX; VA; VT; WI; WV; NB; NS; ON; QC
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Plants of Plantago major and P. rugelii are morphologically indistinguishable when young; they may be differentiated with certainty only at fruiting stage. DNA sequence data (A. Shipunov et al. 2014) confirm that the two species are distinct: P. rugelii is different from P. major by 11 substitutions in the ITS2 sequence.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Source FNA vol. 17, p. 286. FNA vol. 17, p. 292.
Parent taxa Plantaginaceae > Plantago Plantaginaceae > Plantago
Sibling taxa
P. afra, P. argyrea, P. aristata, P. australis, P. canescens, P. cordata, P. coronopus, P. elongata, P. eriopoda, P. firma, P. floccosa, P. helleri, P. heterophylla, P. hookeriana, P. indica, P. lanceolata, P. macrocarpa, P. major, P. maritima, P. media, P. ovata, P. patagonica, P. pusilla, P. rhodosperma, P. rugelii, P. sempervirens, P. sparsiflora, P. subnuda, P. tweedyi, P. virginica, P. wrightiana
P. afra, P. argyrea, P. aristata, P. australis, P. canescens, P. cordata, P. coronopus, P. elongata, P. erecta, P. eriopoda, P. firma, P. floccosa, P. helleri, P. heterophylla, P. hookeriana, P. indica, P. lanceolata, P. macrocarpa, P. major, P. maritima, P. media, P. ovata, P. patagonica, P. pusilla, P. rhodosperma, P. sempervirens, P. sparsiflora, P. subnuda, P. tweedyi, P. virginica, P. wrightiana
Synonyms P. patagonica var. californica, P. erecta subsp. rigidior, P. hookeriana var. californica
Name authority E. Morris: Bull. Torrey Bot. Club 27: 118. (1900) Decaisne: in A. P. de Candolle and A. L. P. P. de Candolle, Prodr. 13(1): 700. (1852)
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