A GUIDE TO THE WILD Ft^OWERS 95 



spicuous, greenish-brown, borne in slender elongated erect 

 spikes. Petals present, but small, and partly hidden by the 

 sepals and bracts in some species. Fruit a tiny dry, pointed 

 pod. (Piantaginaccae.) 



Leaves broad, obviously long-stalked . . Common Plantain no. 274 

 Leaves narrow, diminishing towards the base, not obviously long 

 stalked 

 Flower cluster 1-4 in. long, without the bracts of No. 276 .... 



Ribwort no. 275 



Flower cluster 2-6 in. long, with long bracts (See Fig. 276) 

 Bracted Plantain no. 276 



274. Common Plantain. Plantago major. A tough, smooth, 

 coarse perennial with a rosette of basal leaves prominently 

 3-1 1 ribbed. Leaf-stalk usually twice the length of the blade. 

 Leaf-blade oval, 2-5 in. long, pointed at both ends. Stalk 

 of the flower cluster 6-18 in. tall, the slender spike about 

 ^ in. thick. A weed throughout North America. May-Sept. 

 Fig. 274. There are one or two close relatives, one of which 

 grows in salt marshes. It is similar to the preceding, but 

 decidedly hairy, a little fleshy, and is known as Plantago 

 halophila. 



275. Ribwort. Plantago lanccolata. Flower cluster similar to 

 No. 274, but a little shorter and thicker, without bracts. 

 (See Fig. 276.) Leaves lance-shaped, 3-9 in. long, promi- 

 nently 3-5 ribbed, narrowed almost to a leaf-stalk towards the 

 base. A common weed nearly everywhere, but a native of 

 Europe. April-October. 



276. Bracted Plantain. Plantago aristata. A dark green 

 slightly woolly plant with long narrow leaves that are ex- 

 ceeded by the stalk of the flower cluster. Leaves scarcely 

 34 in. wide, often 3-ribbed, pointed at the tip, and narrowed 

 at the base into a short leaf-stalk. Flower cluster rather 

 dense, hairy, but not woolly, 2-6 in. long. Between each 

 flower there arises a long narrow bract. Common as a weed in 

 dry places from Maine to Georgia, and westward, where 

 it is native on dry plains and prairies. May-October. Fig. 

 276. 



