PLANTAGO MAJOR subsp. INTERMEDIA
Family and Genus:- See- PLANTAGINACEAE/Subgen. PLANTAGO
Common Names:- Greater plantain
Homotypic Synonyms:- Plantago uliginosa
Meaning:- Plantago (L) Foot-sole-like, (reference to the way the leaves lie flat on
the ground).
Major (L) Larger, greater, bigger.
Intermedia (L) Intermediate, between extremes.
Plant:- Perennial with one or few rosettes
Leaves:-
1) (1·5-)5-30(-40) x (0·5-)3-10(-15) cm;
a) lamina, ovate to elliptical, entire or irregularly margins dentate, 3- to 9-veined,
glabrous or puberulent.
2) Petiole, as long as the lamina or shorter.
Flower:-
1) Scapes, equalling or exceeding the leaves, striate or terete, with short,
appressed or ascending hairs.
2) Sepals, 1·5-2·5 mm, subequal, glabrous, green, margins scarious.
3) Corolla-tube, c. 2 mm, glabrous;
a) lobes, c. 1 mm, lanceolate to ovate, subobtuse, glabrous.
4) Stamens, protruding, exserted, 2-3 mm.
5) Spikes, as long as or shorter than rest of scape, dense.
6) Bracts, 1-2 mm, ovate, glabrous.
Fruit:-
1) Capsule, 2-4 mm.
2) Seeds, 14-34, 1-1·5 mm, ellipsoid or ellipsoid-trigonous.
Key features:-
1) Bracts, more than half as long as the sepals.
2) Seeds, 14-34, ellipsoid or ellipsoid-trigonous.
Habitat:- Seasonally damp, often trampled ruderalised habitats. 0-1300 m.
Distribution:- Widespread throughout the Mediterranean. Limited distribution
across Crete. Known from only a few locations in the centre and west.
Flowering time:- Apr-Aug.
Photos by:- Fotis Samaritakis
SPECIES DESCRIPTION
