Minnesota Plant Life. 



and troublesome weed in lawns throughout the state. The 

 stems of the plantains are very short, situated underground, 

 commonly in an erect position. A cluster of leaves with prom- 

 inent longitudinal veins are borne on this short stem and fn.m 

 the center of the tufts of leaves an axis arises, in the plantains 

 proper prolonged into a dense spike of flowers. In the related 

 shoreweed, not known to occur in Minnesota, the flowers are 

 solitary on the erect axes. Each plantain flower is provided 

 with a four-lobed corolla and calyx and there are ordinarily 

 four stamens, though the number in some species is reduced 

 to two. The fruit-rudiment matures into a two-chambered 

 capsule that splits by a circular cleft, thus removing the tip 

 as a lid and allowing the seeds to escape. 



In Minnesota there are six or seven varieties of plantain. 

 The common plantain of dooryards has broad, smooth or 

 slightly hairy leaves, arising from a thick, short rootstock. 

 The spikes are long, slender and many-flowered. The pod 

 opens by a ring around the middle. Rugel's plantain resembles 

 this closely, but has fewer flowers in a spike and the pods split 

 below the middle, so that the lid is the larger portion. The 

 rib-grass, or rib plantain, is introduced from Europe and is 

 recognized by its slightly hairy, lance-shaped, or broadly grass- 

 like leaves, and its pod splits at about the middle. The salt- 

 marsh plantain, known from the saline soils of the Red river 

 valley, has oblong, lance-shaped leaves and pods splitting below 

 the middle. The heart-leafed plantain has broad, heart-shaped 

 leaves of a purplish-green color with smooth surfaces. The 

 spike is not continuous but is interrupted by short, flowerless 

 areas. The pod splits at about the middle. The woolly plan- 

 tain, found on prairies in the Minnesota valley, especially 

 upon high knolls, has silky or woolly, very slender grass-like 

 leaves. The whole plant, from the hairs, has a white aspect. 

 The pods split at about the middle. The bracted plantain lias 

 grass-like leaves, but is not furnished with silky hairs and the 

 spike is clothed with slender green bracts or scales which pro- 

 trude considerably beyond the ends of the flowers. The pd 

 splits below the middle. 



