ENGLISH PLANTAIN
or RIBWORT PLANTAIN
Plantago lanceolata

Location
Found throughout campus.

Description
The leaves of English plantain are lance-shaped, and ribbed.  The inconspicuous flowers are in a dense spike and can be seen from spring to fall (Newcomb 1977).

History
In Europe, English plantain has been used since ancient times (Blumenthal 2000).

Farmers considered English plantain a preferred food for sheep and thus the plantain was frequently planted in meadows and pastures for that purpose.   English plantains were not really used as a crop except on land that would grow little else (Grieve 1998).

Fresh leaf juice of plantain was used to promote wound healing and for fevers (Le Strange 1977).  Plantain tea was used for congestion (Grieve 1998).

The seed husks are rich in mucilage, which was once used in France for stiffening woven fabrics (Grieve 1998, Le Strange 1977).

Current Medicinal Uses
Germany’s Commission E approved the internal use of plantain herb for inflammation of the oral and pharyngeal mucosa; externally, it is used for skin inflammations (Blumenthal 2000).

Psyllium seed, especially the seed husks, are rich in mucilage polysaccharides. Although P. lanceolata is not used commercially for this purpose, the seeds and husks of other species of plantain, especially P. psyllium, P. indica, and P. ispaghula are used as bulk-forming laxatives and to lower cholesterol levels (Fugh-Berman 2003)

Adverse Effects
No adverse effects have been associated with English plantain. However, sensitization to psyllium can occur, and esophageal or intestinal obstruction has occurred when psyllium laxatives are taken with insufficient fluid (Fugh-Berman 2003).

References
Blumenthal M, Goldberg A, Brinckmann J, ed. Herbal Medicine. Integrative Medicine Communications, Newton, 2000. (pp. 307-308)

Fugh-Berman A. The 5-Minute herb and dietary supplement clinical consult. Lippincott, Williams and Wilkins, Philadelphia, 2003.

Grieve M. A Modern Herbal. Tiger Books International, London, 1998 (first published in 1931 by Jonathan Cape Ltd):644.

Le Strange, R. A History of Herbal Plants. Arco Publishing Company, Inc., New York, 1977. (p. 205)

Newcomb L. Newcomb’s Wildflower Guide. Little, Brown and Company, Boston, 1977. (p. 398)