[Illustration: TALLOW-WEED RED-SEEDED PLANTAIN]
Herbs; leaves basal; calyx 4-lobed; corolla papery, 3-4-lobed; stamens
4, on corolla-tube; capsule (in ours) opening by a horizontal division.
Tallow-Weed. Wright’s Plantain (_Plantago wrightiana_) is a common plant
on prairies from Texas to Arizona and blooms from April to June. It is
called tallow-weed because cattle fatten on the plants. The stems are
6-8 in. high, and the numerous basal leaves are half as long, narrow,
smooth, and dark green. The small 4-lobed flowers have a stiff, papery
white corolla with spreading lobes. The small capsules open by a lid.
Red-Seeded Plantain or Ribwort (_Plantago rhodosperma_) has broad
leaves, 3-5-ribbed, and narrow spikes of flowers. The leaf-rosettes are
often a foot broad. The corolla lobes are erect and are closed over one
another. The ribwort is a very common weed in sandy soil from Missouri
to Texas and Arizona.
There are many other plantains in the state, all more or less abundant.
The group has retained the old Latin name. Scilla-seed, a laxative in
recent use, is obtained from a South American plantain. The seeds of the
lance-leaved plantain are sold as food for birds.