Native to Europe
Semi-evergreen perennial
Approx. 12" tall
Egg-shaped, smooth leaves arranged in a basal rosette
Tiny, white, wind-pollinated flowers with a small, orange fruit.
Does best in moist, nutrient rich soil but is tolerant of poor urban conditions.
Highly nutritious for wildlife such as birds and pollinators. Contains a high amount of calcium and vitamins A, C, and K.
Sentimental and Symbolic Value
It was called "white man's footprint" by Native Americans because it grew where Europeans cleared land. It was known among Natives, especially in the Northeast, as a sign of European encroachment and the potential dangers that brought, making it a bad omen.
The plant is commonly used in Europe to treat inflammation, fevers and bleeding. It was also widely used in traditional near-Eastern, Islamic, and Mediterranean medicine as far back as 40 AD. In Persian culture, it was considered to be of "cold" and "dry" temperment, and should be consumed to cool and/or dry the body.
Specimen photographed found on St. Stephen Street, Boston, Massachusetts, Part of the Spontaneous Urban Plants assignment (10/13/2021)
Plant History and Etymology
Plantago comes from the Latin planta, meaning "shoot" or "sprout", and the suffix -āgō, which means "greater" or "older". Major means "greater", referring to its size and abundance. Plantago major in its native Europe and Asia commonly grew on disturbed sites.
Its medicinal properties were known as far back as the first century AD, where it was chronicled in the seminal Greek treatise De materia medica by Pedanius Dioscorides. This was the definitive herbal guide in the Western world until the Renaissance. It was also recorded in Muslim physician and philosopher Ibn Sina's al-Qānūn fī al-Ṭibb, "The Canon of Medicine" (1025).
Brought along by Europeans to the New World, it quickly spread and naturalized throughout New England. Its prescence was picked up on by Native Americans as a sign of European encroachment, leading to the name "White Man's Foot". It soon transitioned from a desirable medicinal herb to a persistent but not invasive weed, springing up in any disturbed environment that is not closely maintained.
Design Considerations
The boadleaf plantain is mostly low-lying and inconspicuous, but its erect, reddish to green seed stalks can be an interesting aesthetic point to highlight. Its seeds are highly nutritious for birds and often used in birdseed, and its leaves can be eaten like any leafy vegetable such as spinach, so it could make a good choice for an edible garden for both humans and animals. Consider that it is highly competitive due to its its heavy, flat leaves that suppress neighboring plants.
Sources
Del Tredici, Peter, and Steward T. A. Pickett. “Herbaceous Dicots.” In Wild Urban Plants of the Northeast: A Field Guide, 2nd ed., p. 278. Cornell University Press, 2020. http://www.jstor.org/stable/10.7591/j.ctvq2w0x1.11.
Najafian, Younes, Shokouh Sadat Hamedi, Masoumeh Kaboli Farshchi, and Zohre Feyzabadi. 2018. “Plantago Major in Traditional Persian Medicine and Modern Phytotherapy: A Narrative Review.” Electronic Physician 10 (2): 6390–99. https://doi.org/10.19082/6390.
Welk, Erik. 2011. “Species - Distribution - Plantago Major.” Uni-Halle.de. 2011. http://chorologie.biologie.uni-halle.de/areale/VERBREITUNG.php?sprache=E&arealtyp=Arealtyp%2010.01&art=Plantago%20major.
“Plantago Major | North Carolina Extension Gardener Plant Toolbox.” 2021. Ncsu.edu. 2021. https://plants.ces.ncsu.edu/plants/plantago-major/.