XCIX. PLANTAGTKACE.E. 477 



Leaves o-nerved, sheathing at the base ; bracts obtuse, 



as long as or longer than the calyx 3. P. amplexicauUs. 



Corolla-lobes obtuse 4. P. ovata. 



Corolla-lobes hirsute ; leaves oblanceolate 5. P. ciliata. 



1. Plantago major, Linn. Sp. PI. (1753) p. 112. A perennial 

 herb uith a.n erect stout rootstoek. Leaves alternate, radical, 1-5 in. 

 long, of variable width, ovate or ovate-oblong, obtuse or subacute, entire 

 or toothed, nearly glabrous, base tapering and decurreut into the petiole 

 3-7 (commonly 5)-nerved ; petioles usually longer than the leaf-blade, 

 broad, sheathing at the base. Flowers scattered or crowded in long 

 slender rather lax spikes 2-6 in. long ; bracts y^-yy" "^- ^oi^g' shorter 

 than the calyx, broadly ovate-oblong, obtuse, with scarious margins. 

 Calyx g in. Ions;, glabrous ; sepals oblong, obtuse or subacute, obtusely 

 keeled on the back and with broad scarious margins. Corolla ^ in. long, 

 glabrous ; lobes lanceolate, acute, reflexed. Capsules ovoid, ^~\ in. 

 long, glabrous, dehiscing circumscissilely a little above the base, the 

 top coining off as a conical lid tipped with the remains of the style. 

 Seeds 4-8, angled, rugulose, dull-black, -L- in. long. Fl. B. I. v. 4, 

 p. 705; Trim. Fh ' Ceyl. v. 3, p. 389 ; Woodr. in Journ. Bomb. Nat. 

 V. 12 (1899) p. 363 ; Watt, Diet. Econ. Prod. v. 6, part 1, p. 285.— 

 Flowers : JSept.-F'eb. Vern. Bdrtang. 



Rare. Konkan : Bombay, Stocks ! Deccan : Mahablesbwar along the banks of 

 the Yenna River, Cooke \, H. M. Birdwood; Poona, Woodrowl — Disteib. India 

 (temperate and alpine Himalaya, Assam, Biruia, W. Peninsula) ; Ceylon, Malaya, 

 Afghanistan, and westwards to the Atlantic ; wild or introduced in these and many 

 other countries. 



The seeds are used in Indian medicine, having the fame properties ascribed to 

 them as to those of P. ovata. They are largely imported from Persia. See Watt, 

 Diet. Econ. Prod. 1. c. 



2. Plantago Stocksii, Boiss. in DC. Prodr. v. 13, part 1 (1852) 

 p. 720. Annual or perennial, cobwebby or subsilky with white hairs. 

 Leaves l^—l by |-g in., shortly petiolate, lanceolate, long-acuminate, 

 entire, usually 3 (rarely 5)-nerved, tapering at the base into a short 

 often obscure petiole. Flowers on slender scapes which are longer 

 than the leaves ; spikes short and few- flowered, or long with many 

 distant flowers ; bracts J- in. long, broadly ovate, acute, with broad 

 scarious margins. Calyx i in. long, glabrous ; sepals ovate-oblong, 

 obtuse, with broad scarious margins. Corolla-lobes nearly yL in. long, 

 narrowly ovate-lanceolate, very acute, reflexed. Capsules \ in. long, 

 2-seeded, ovoid, subobtuse, tipped with the style-base, smooth, brown, 

 the top coming off as a conical lid. Seeds i in. long, 1 in each cell, 

 oblong, boat-shaped, black. Fl. B. I. v. 4, p. 706 ; Woodr. in Journ. 

 Bomb. Nat. v. 12 (1899) p. 363. PJantacjo remotijiora, Stocks, in Kew 

 Journ. Bot. v. 4 (1852) p. 179.— Flowers : Mar. 



Rare. /)a/2'fli'^ without locality in Herb. Kew. Sind : Kirthar Mountains, &'r £". 

 James ex Woodrow. — Distrib. N.W. India, Beluchistau, Afghanistan. 



3. Plantago amplexicauUs, Cav. Icon. v. 2 (1793) p. 22, t. 125. 



Annual or perennial, more or less hairy, stemless or with a short stem, 

 often branched above. Leaves 3-6 by h in., narrowly lanceolate, 

 acuminate, 5-nerved, narrowed and sheathing at the base, entire or very 

 distantly toothed. Scapes numerous, axillary, terete, glabrous, usually 



