General:
Annual or biennial herb from a taproot; stems erect, several, simple, coarsely hairy, 5-30 cm tall.

Leaves:
Basal leaves narrowly lanceolate, pinnately lobed or deeply dissected, 4-15 cm long, tapered to the base, the lobes ascending, sharp-pointed; stem leaves lacking.

Flowers:
Inflorescence of dense bracteate spikes, the spikes elongate, 2-22 cm long; corollas green-brown, 4-lobed, 3 lobes about 1 mm long, spreading and 1 erect, all narrowly egg-shaped; bracts equal to or twice as long as the sepals, round at the base, long pointed at the tips; stamens conspicuous.

Fruits:
Capsules, broadly egg-shaped, 2-3 mm long; seeds usually 3, the larger one about 1.5 mm long and sometimes partly winged, the smaller ones less than 1 mm long.

Source:  The Illustrated Flora of British Columbia

If more than one illustration is available for a species (e.g., separate illustrations were provided for two subspecies) then links to the separate images will be provided below. Note that individual subspecies or varietal illustrations are not always available.

Illustration Source:  The Illustrated Flora of British Columbia

Synonyms and Alternate Names:
Plantago coronopus subsp. commutata (Guss.) Pilg.

"The family Plantaginaceae includes three genera and an estimated 250-275 species from diverse habitats throughout the world (Pilger 1937). In Canada, the family is represented by two genera containing seven introduced species and ten native species (Bassett 1973). References Bassett, I. John. 1973. The Plantains of Canada. Monograph No. 7. Canada Department of Agriculture.