Plantago australis
Lam. Southern PlantainShort-lived perennial; rootstock unthickened, with many adventitious roots. Leaves rosetted, c. elliptic, mostly 10–30 cm long and 1.5–5 cm wide, acute or obtuse, scabrous to glabrescent, usually with 3 main veins, margins c. entire; petiole to c. 15 cm long. Spike long-cylindric, usually 10–40 cm long, dense at anthesis, more open in fruit; peduncles 5–40 cm long, sparsely hairy; bracts lanceolate to triangular, 2–3 mm long. Sepals oblong-ovate, c. 2.5 mm long, unequal, strongly ridged; corolla-tube c. 3 mm long, lobes 2.5–3 mm long, erect or rarely spreading; anthers c. 0.3 mm long, not exserted. Capsule ovoid to ellipsoid, 2.5–3 mm long; seeds 3, ellipsoid, 1.5–2.5 mm long, black. Flowers spring and summer.
GleP, VVP, GipP, OtP, WaP, CVU, WPro, HSF, HNF, OtR. Also naturalised SA, Tas. Native to South America. In Victoria known from a few collections in the south, where usually collected from moist disturbed sites.
Both P. australis and P. myosuros have cleistogamous flowers with erect corolla-lobes. The former is, however, a more robust species with adventitious roots rather than a persistent taproot.
Jeanes, J.A. (1999). Plantaginaceae. In: Walsh, N.G.; Entwisle, T.J., Flora of Victoria Vol. 4, Cornaceae to Asteraceae, pp. 463–474. Inkata Press, Melbourne.
Spinning
