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Plantago

L. (1753)

This name is accepted

Kingdom: Viridiplantae Phylum: Magnoliophyta Class/Clade: Eudicot-Asterids Order: Lamiales Family: Plantaginaceae Genus: Plantago

Description

Key Characters:

Growth Form: Annual or perennial herbs, rarely subshrubs.

Stems:

Roots:

Leaves: Leaves simple. Leaves primarily basal, occasionally a few cauline. Blades undifferentiated from petioles and apparently representing expanded petioles. Stipules absent.

Flowers: Flowers in spikes or heads, each flower subtended by a single bract, bracteoles absent. Flowers bisexual (perfect) or unisexual, sessile or subsessile, protogynous. Calyx of 4 sepals, the 2 next to the bract (anterior pair) often somewhat different than posterior pair, the lobes imbricate. Corolla 4-lobed, salverform, scarious, the lobes imbricate, persistent in fruit, the tube covering the upper part of the capsule, the lobes reflexed, spreading, or erect and coherent. Stamens 4, alternate with the corolla lobes; filaments adnate to the corolla tube; anthers long–exserted, dithecal, opening by longitudinal slits. Ovary superior, 2-carpellate, with as many cells; ovule placentation axile; style 1, terminal, slender; stigmas protruding from buds.

Fruit: Capsules circumscissile at or below the middle; enclosed in the persistent capsules. Seeds with well-developed; firm; translucent endosperm.

Ploidy:

Habitat:

Elevation Range:

Historical Distribution

Uses and Culture

USES

  • The leaves are baked and eaten as a "tonic", also used as a laxative (Kruass 1993:102). To treat hehe pehu, swollen boils or sores, laukahi leaves are rubbed with salt. Then the wilted leaves are applied to the affected area and wrapped securely. Repeat until the hehe, boil, bursts and the pus is removed (Chun 1994:175–177). Some of these uses also include the introduced species, Plantago major.

Natural History

Island Status

Dispersal Agents


Pollinators

Specimens

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Bibliography

Name Published In: Sp. Pl.: 112 (1753)

Occurrences

SNo. Scientific Name Scientific Name Authorship Locality Habitat Basis of Record Recorded By Record Number Island Source Date
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