White plantain
Plantago albicans
Family · Plantaginaceae · Harmless
The silvery plantain of dry and saline soils of the south and interior, covered in white hairs that make it shine. It is one of the few plants that takes trampling, drought and salt at once.
Fields and pasture · Roadsides and waste ground · Scrubland · Dunes and sand
Also known assilvery plantain
How to tell it
Narrow long leaves covered in silky white hairs on both sides, with three to five parallel veins. A whitish dense spike on a hairy stalk. The whole plant looks grey or silver.
What it is confused with
Hare's-foot plantain
Plantago lagopus
Both hairy with a pale spike. Hare's-foot has a short oval spike like a hare's paw and green leaves; this has an elongated spike and clearly silvery leaves.
Open sheet →What it is for
No food use. Plantain seeds are mucilaginous and served as a mild laxative, the use behind the Spanish name for the group.