By Mary Free, Extension Master Gardener
After adhering to healthy lawn care practices, one expects to be rewarded with verdant carpets, dense with grasses and perhaps intermixed with eco-friendly clover. Depending on one’s sensibilities though, desire can turn to dismay by the sight of leafy patches that look like they belong among the vegetables rather than the turf. Although these 6–12-inch diameter, basal rosettes of large oval or lance-shaped leaves, commonly known as plantains (the edible herbs, not the bananas), would be at home in the kitchen garden, in the lawn they are usually considered weeds.
Plantains or Plantago are mostly found in compacted or rocky soils and in artificial habitats like pavement cracks. They are a good ground cover for erosion control in hard-to-grow, full sun to partial shade locations. They are robust and can survive recurrent mowing and trampling. If you wish to diversify your grass lawn and welcome some herb volunteers, Plantago offers the following benefits.
Ecological Uses
Plantago species are larval hosts to numerous lepidopterans, including common buckeye butterfly and white-lined sphinx moth. Mammalian herbivores both domestic and wild, like rabbits, groundhogs, and deer, eat the leaves (although the hairiness of P. virginica is probably less appealing to foragers) and sometimes the flowering stalks. Squirrels sometimes eat the seed capsules and birds, like northern cardinal, the seeds.
Photo © Elaine Mills
Medicinal Uses
Plantago has been used for medicinal purposes for thousands of years in Asia and in Europe, and by Native Americans. The earliest known account of the plantain is in “De Materia Medica” written by a Greek botanist who lived from 40–90 AD (Najafian et al. 2018). Modern medicine has shown that Plantago may be beneficial in a variety of health conditions, although there is still research to be done. Moistened, mashed leaves have long been used topically as a poultice applied to insect bites, bee stings, minor cuts and burns, blisters, stinging nettle irritation, poison ivy rashes, and splinters because of its reported pain-killing, anti-inflammatory, antiseptic, and healing properties.
Culinary Uses
Photo © Mary Free
You can forage for Plantago, but for regular use as an edible it might be best to grow the plants in a separate patch so that you know that they have not been exposed to heavy traffic or contaminated by chemicals. Young, tender leaves can be eaten raw in salads or in smoothies or cooked as greens or in soups and stews. Older leaves become fibrous and are difficult to chew. Seeds are edible, but the stem is too fibrous to eat. Panfry the mature brown flower heads/capsules and stems in olive oil for a few seconds; once cooled, “place the shoot in your mouth, clench with your teeth, and quickly pull out the stem” (Wanjek 2011). Seeds contain psyllium, a type of fiber often used as a natural laxative.
Make sure that the plantains that you eat or use for a poultice have not been exposed to chemicals and that you wash them first!
Management
If you do not want a “freedom” lawn where herbs, or in this case weeds, are at liberty to grow, then vigorous, dense lawns, cut at the right height for the turf species, can prevent or slow the establishment and spread of these plants. See Caring for the Home Lawn. Plantago is likely to appear in lawns that are thin, have bare spots, or have been cut too short. You can eliminate small patches by diligent hand weeding. It is best to attend to the rosettes early and to revisit the areas off and on to make sure they do not reappear. It is easiest to weed when the soil is moist (after a rain or watering). Instead of mowing rosettes into the lawn, discard them in the trash, or if the lawn is chemical-free, bring them to the kitchen for culinary use. Add some compost to the bare spots left after removal and top with a sprinkle of grass seed. Periodic hand weeding or use of landscape fabric covered with mulch can be effective in controlling Plantago in ornamental gardens.
If you are unable to weed promptly, pick off flower stalks as they emerge from the center of the rosettes so they will not go to seed. Plantago spreads by seeds carried by the wind, and, when wet and sticky, by passing mammals, humans, or objects, including lawn mowers (so be sure to clean after use). Learn how to Manage Weeds Without Chemicals or see Home Grounds and Animals, 2021 Pest Management Guide (Chapter 5-9, Lawn Weeds).
Identification and Life Cycle
Frequently occurring Plantago in NoVA are natives Plantago rugelii (American, broad-leaved, or blackseed plantain) and P. virginica (Virginia or paleseed plantain), both common throughout Virginia. The introduced species P. major (common plantain) has been reported mostly in a half dozen Northern Virginia counties, including Arlington and Fairfax, while P. lanceolata (English plantain or rib-grass) is common throughout the state. Although invasive in parts of the country, neither introduced species is listed as invasive in Alexandria and Arlington.
Left to right rosettes/leaves and flower spikes: (1st Row) Natives Plantago rugelii and P. virginica; (2nd Row) Introduced P. major and P. lanceolata.
Note: Click on images to see enlarged photos, captions, and photo attributions.
On a mobile phone, click on the information symbol (circle with a letter ℹ︎ symbol).
The Flora of Virginia notes that the origin—native or introduced—of many species of Plantago is “uncertain or controversial.” It also notes that non-native P. major is incompletely mapped in the state, because it is often confused with native P. rugelii. Such confusion is reflected on numerous botanical websites. Even the common names can add to the muddle. Many sources refer to P. major as broadleaf plantain while the Flora uses broad-leaved plantain as an alternative common name for P. rugelii, reinforcing the importance of relying instead on a plant’s Latin name.
Although they both share the same flowering cycle—from June to November—and look similar from casual observation, upon closer inspection one can discern the differences. Spikes with mature fruit (brown or purple) have distinguishing characteristics—the elongated capsules of P. rugelii split open or dehisce below the middle, while the egg-shaped capsules of P. major dehisce near the middle. If capsules have not developed, look at the petioles—those of P. rugelii are glabrous and purple to red at least at the base, while those of P. major are green (slight purplish tinge is rare) and maybe pubescent at the base.
Lefthand column: Plantago rugelii; Righthand column: Plantago major.
Note: Click on images to see enlarged photos, captions, and photo attributions.
On a mobile phone, click on the information symbol (circle with a letter ℹ︎ symbol).
The lanceolate-leaved P. virginica and P. lanceolata are easier to distinguish. P. virginica is an annual ephemeral, with hairy leaves and a taproot, that flowers from late March to June, then disappears. It is unlikely to become a problem in lawns unless the soil is sandy. P. lanceolata has mostly glabrous leaves and thin, fibrous roots and flowers from April to November.
| Plantago Species | Leaf Shape | Leaf Veins | Leaf Pubescence | Leaf Petiole | Roots* | Inflorescence | Fruit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| P. rugelii native perennial | broadly elliptic to ovate, up to 6″ long blades | parallel, 5–9 prominent veins | finely hirsute to glabrous | purple to red and glabrous at the base | fibrous or taproot | narrowly cylindrical floral spikes on (up to 12” tall) stalks from June to November | elongated, circumscissile capsules dehisce about one-third above the base; black seeds |
| P. major introduced perennial (sometimes annual) | broadly elliptic to ovate, up to 6” long blades | parallel, 3–5 prominent veins | glabrous to pubescent | light green (rarely with purple tinge) and maybe pubescent at the base | slender, fibrous (annual with small taproot) | narrowly cylindrical floral spikes on upper two-thirds of (up to 20” tall) stalks from June to November | egg-shaped, circumscissile capsules dehisce near the middle; reddish-brown seeds |
| P. virginica native annual or biennial, ephemeral | oblanceolate to spatulate, up to 6” long | parallel, 3–5 veins | villous and hoary pubescent above and woolly pubescent below | winged, often purple to red | taproot | cylindrical floral spikes with slightly hirsute bracts on upper two-thirds of (up to 8” tall) stalks late March to June | oblong circumscissile capsules dehisce around the middle; seeds light brow |
| P. lanceolata introduced perennial | lanceolate or broader, up to 16” long including the petiole | parallel, 3–7 prominent veins, strongly ribbed | glabrous to sparsely pubescent | obscured by decurrent blade tissue, long-pilose at root crown | slender, fibrous | oblong floral spikes (up to 2” long) with strongly exerted stamens on (up to 18” tall) stalks from April to November | egg-shaped, circumscissile capsules dehisce near the base; dark brown seeds |
NOTE: Plants in the wild should not be eaten without consulting an expert or authoritative field guides for information on identification and food preparation. It is easy to confuse plants in the wild, so you should be 100% sure they are edible before consuming them.
References
- Buckner H. 2020. How to Plant and Grow Plantain, A Culinary and Medicinal Herb. Gardener’s Path.
- Elmore CL, Cudney DW, McGiffen ME Jr. 2007. Plantains: Integrated Pest Management for Home Gardeners and Landscape Professionals. Pest Notes. Publication 7478. University of California, Davis.
- Najafian Y, Hamedi SS, Farshchi MK, Feyzabadi Z. 2018. Plantago major in Traditional Persian Medicine and modern phytotherapy: a narrative review. Electron Physician.
- Plantain. 2022. University of Maryland. (accessed July 18, 2022).
- Wanjek C. 2011. The Five Healthiest Backyard Weeds. LIVESCI=NCE.
- Weakley AS, Ludwig JC, Townsend JF. 2012. Flora of Virginia. Botanical Research Institute of Texas.