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Native Plant Database

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Plantago major (Common plantain)
Lytle, Melody

Plantago major L.

Common plantain

Plantaginaceae (Plantain Family)

Synonyms: Plantago major var. intermedia

USDA Symbol: plma2

USDA Native Status: Native to U.S.

Small flowers are massed in a narrow, cylindrical, greenish-white spike, rising from a set of broad, strongly ribbed basal leaves.

This broad-leaved Plantain is considered a weed in lawns and gardens. The equally common Pale Plantain (P. rugelii), can usually be distinguished by the purple bases of its leaf stalks. Heart-leaved or Water Plantain (P. cordata) another broad-leaved species, occurs in streams from New York south to North Carolina, west to Alabama and Louisiana, and north to Wisconsin and Ontario. It can be distinguished from other species by its hollow stem.

 

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Plant Characteristics

Duration: Perennial
Habit: Herb
Leaf: Green
Fruit:

Bloom Information

Bloom Color: Green
Bloom Time: Jun , Jul , Aug , Sep , Oct

Distribution

USA: AK , AL , AR , AZ , CA , CO , CT , DC , DE , FL , GA , HI , 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
Canada: NB , NS
Native Distribution: Throughout North America, except parts of far north.
Native Habitat: Waste places, fields, roadsides.
USDA Native Status: L48(I), AK(I), HI(I), PR(I), VI(I), CAN(I), GL(I), SPM(I)

Growing Conditions

Water Use: Medium
Light Requirement: Part Shade
CaCO3 Tolerance: Medium

Recommended Species Lists

Find native plant species by state. Each list contains commercially available species suitable for gardens and planned landscapes. Once you have selected a collection, you can browse the collection or search within it using the combination search.

View Recommended Species page

Additional resources

USDA: Find Plantago major in USDA Plants
FNA: Find Plantago major in the Flora of North America (if available)
Google: Search Google for Plantago major

Metadata

Record Modified: 2012-07-31
Research By: TWC Staff

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