Common Name: Ribwort Plantain

General Information

Plantago lanceolata is a biennial to perennial plant producing a dense basal rosette of leaves from a thick rhizome. It can grow 10 - 60cm tall. The plant can sometimes become annual and complete its life-cycle in 6 weeks in the tropics[, ].
The plant is harvested from the wild for local use as a food, medicine and source of materials.
The seeds readily adhere to animals or people, which promotes dispersal. They can also be transported by
water. The plant is a common weed of cultivated land and grassland in the temperate to subtropical regions, also spreading into the tropics, where it is mainly found at moderate to higher elevations[, ].

Known Hazards

Care should be exercised when collecting the plant from the wild for medicinal purposes, since they may contain high concentrations of heavy metals such as lead and cadmium where they grow along roads[].

Botanical References

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Range

Europe, including Britain, from Iceland south and east to Spain, northern and central Asia

Habitat

Grassland, roadsides etc, a common weed of lawns and cultivated ground, on neutral and basic soils[, ].

Properties

Weed Potential	Yes
Edibility Rating
Medicinal Rating
Other Uses Rating
Habit	Perennial
Height	0.45 m
Pollinators	Wind, Flies, Beetles
Self-fertile	Yes
Cultivation Status	Wild

Cultivation Details

Ribwort plantain was originally native to the temperate zone, but has spread as a weed following human activity and can now be found in many regions of the world, though in the tropicsa it is found mainly at higher elevations.
Succeeds in any moderately fertile soil in a sunny position[]. Plants also succeed in very poor land[].
An important food plant for the caterpillars of many species of butterflies[].

Edible Uses

Young leaves - raw or cooked[, , ]. They are rather bitter and very tedious to prepare, the fibrous strands are best removed prior to eating[, ]. The very young leaves are somewhat better and are less fibrous[].

Seed - cooked. Used like sago[, ]. The seed can be ground into a powder and added to flours when making bread, cakes or whatever.

A mucilage obtained from the seed coats is an excellent thickener and stabilizer that is used in the ice-cream industry and also in the preparation of chocolate[].

Medicinal

Ribwort plantain is a commonly used traditional medicine with a wide range of applications - in particular it helps to detoxify the body and is a safe and effective treatment for bleeding, iuickly staunching blood flow and encouraging the repair of damaged tissue[, ]. A range of pharmacological activities has been found in tests with the plant.
Biologically active compounds include polysaccharides, caffeic acid derivatives, flavonoids, iridoid glycosides and terpenoids[].
The seeds owe their laxative properties to a polysaccharide that is very hydrophilic. They absorb much water and form a gel that increases stool bulk, stimulates peristalsis and facilitates bowel movements. The effect has been confirmed by several clinical studies. The mucilage can also be used as supportive therapy in diarrhoea, because the transit period of the bowel contents is extended[].
The leaves, seeds and roots contain caffeic acid and derivatives such as chlorogenic acid, neochlorogenic acid, plantamajoside, acteoside (verbascoside), syringic acid and vanillic acid[].
Plantamajoside has shown anti-inflammatory activity and some antibacterial activity. Both plantamajoside and acteoside have anti-oxidant activity[].
Acteoside has antibacterial, antihypertensive, immunosuppressant and analgesic activities[].
A methanol extract of the plant showed no cytotoxic activity against a human tumour cell line of renal adenocarcinoma, but did show total inhibition of breast adenocarcinoma and melanoma growth in culture[].
The leaves also contain iridoid glycosides (1.9 - 2.4%) such as aucubin, catalpol and asperuloside. Aucubin has shown anti-inflammatory, hepatoprotective and spasmolytic activities and antiviral activity against hepatitis B virus[].

The leaves have a bitter flavour and are astringent, demulcent, diuretic, mildly expectorant, haemostatic and ophthalmic[, , , , , , , , ]. Internally, they are taken as a general detoxifier of the body and are used in the treatment of a wide range of complaints including diarrhoea, gastritis, peptic ulcers, irritable bowel syndrome, haemorrhage, haemorrhoids, cystitis, bronchitis, catarrh, sinusitis, asthma and hay fever[, , ].
The leaves are used externally in treating skin inflammations, malignant ulcers, cuts, stings etc[, ]. The heated leaves are used as a wet dressing for wounds, swellings etc[, ]. The leaves are used to make an eyewash to treat ophthalmia[].

The root is a remedy for the bite of rattlesnakes, used in equal portions with Marrubium vulgare[]. It is used in the treatment of cough, asthma and other pulmonary diseases[].

The seeds are used in the treatment of parasitic worms[].
Plantain seeds contain up to 30% mucilage which swells up in the gut, acting as a bulk laxative and soothing irritated membranes[]. Sometimes the seed husks are used without the seeds[].

A distilled water made from the plant makes an excellent eye lotion[].

Other Uses

A good fibre is obtained from the leaves[], it is said to be suitable for textiles[].

A mucilage from the seed coats is used as a fabric stiffener[]. It is an excellent thickener that is used in cosmetics such as lotions and hair wave sets[].
The seeds can be used as a source of a low-cost gelling agent suitable for tissue culture. The quality is comparable to that of agar, but at about 10% of the cost[]
The mucilage is obtained by macerating the seed in hot water[, ].

Gold and brown dyes are obtained from the whole plant[].

Propagation

Seed - sow spring in a cold frame. When they are large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and plant them out in early summer.
A sowing can be made outdoors in situ in mid to late spring if you have enough seeds.