Key for the description of Plantaginaceae from East Europe

Plantaginaceae Juss.

1

 Leaves opposite; stems with long internodes. Inflorescences nearly capitate. Capsula with 2 big seeds.: Psyllium Mill.
- Leaves alternate, united in the rosette. Inflorescences long or short cylindrical. Capsula with (1) 2 or big number of seeds.: Plantago L.

Genus 1. Psyllium Mill.

1

 Annuals.

2

- Perennials with lignose stems; bracts of lower flowers are very broad, covered the most part of inflorescence base: P. sempervirens.

2

 Bracts of lower flowers with long, narrowed appendages; of upper flowers - nearly spathulate, with keel, which extend to the tip. Grey, commonly branching, plants. P. arenarium

3

- Bracts of lower flowers with straight appendages, bracts of upper flowers - egg-shaped, with keel, which not extend to the tip. Green plants, commonly with rare branches. P. squalidum.

3

 Bracts of upper flowers are pilose, egg-shaped. Sepals are pilose on the back side: P. arenarium subsp. arenarium.
- Bracts of upper flowers nearly glabrous, it width is bigger, than length. Sepals are glabrous on the back side: P. arenarium subsp. orientalis.

Genus 2. Plantago L.

1

 Two adaxial sepals united by near full length. Leaves from linear to broadly lanceolate. Spike stalk is grooved. Spikes are very compact.

2

- Adaxial sepals free. Spike stalks cylindrical, sometimes grooved, but at last case spikes are loose.

3

2

 Adventitious roots absent; lateral roots are thin, it width less than 0.75 mm; rhizome is short (5-7 mm length), it is vertical or near vertical; sepals 2.2-3.5 mm length.: P. lanceolata.
- Adventitious roots are thick (1-2 mm); rhizome in most cases is long (7 cm length and bigger), nearly horizontal; sepals near 4 mm length: P. altissima.

3(1)

 Leaves lanceolate, with lobed or toothed margins. Spike stalks adpressed to the ground, sometimes rising upward. Plants of Crimea: P. coronopus.
- Leaves linear or more broad, smooth edged or little and rare toothed.

4

4

 Leaves linear or linear-lanceolate.

5

- Leaves from broadly lanceolate to broadly elliptical or broadly egg-shaped.

13

5

 Corolla tube is pilose.

6

- Corolla tube is naked.

8

6

 Spikes egg-shaped, significantly shorter than sterile part of spike stalk. Corolla lobes without cilia. Plants 9-14 cm height; mature leaves 5-9 cm length, glabrous, lower leaves are much shorter than upper leaves: P. schrenkii.
- Spike long cylindrical, some shorter than sterile part of spike stalk. Corolla lobes often with cilia. Plants 15-50 cm height, mature leaves 10-25 cm length, all are more or less identical, glabrous or (more often) pilose. P. maritima.

7

7

 Plants with little number of spikes (2-3, rare to 15); spikes long cylindrical. Capsula 3.5-4.25 mm length; seeds 1.75-2 mm length: P. maritima subsp. maritima.
- Plants with big number of spikes (10-15, sometimes to 40); spikes short cylindrical. Capsula 3.75-5 mm length; seeds 2.25-2.75 mm length: P. maritima subsp. subpolaris.

8(5)

 Perennials with thick, often polycephalous rhizome.

9

- Annuals.

10

9

 Bracts' width is greater than it's length; spike short cylindrical. Flowers large, to 1 cm length. Leaves wider than 0.5 cm, with several veins, light-green. Plants of Carpathians: P. atrata.
- Bracts' length is greater than it's width; spike long and narrow cylindrical. Flowers are less than 0.5 cm. Leaves narrower than 0.5 cm, with 1 vein, grayish. Plants of South Ural: P. krascheninnikovii.

10(8)

 Capsula width two seeds.

11

- Capsula width 6-30 seeds.

12

11

 Downy with many long hairs plants. Spike nearly capitate, large; bracts obtuse, shorter than sepals or equal with it. P. minuta.
- Downy with rare hairs plants. Spike long cylindrical; bracts with very long (to 1 cm length) rigid awns: P. patagonica.

12(10)

 Bracts rounded, obtusate. Capsula with 12-30 seeds: P. polysperma.
- Bracts egg-shaped, acute. Capsula with 6-16 seeds: P. tenuiflora.

13(4)

 Spikes are very dense. Petals white scarious; stamens with white or pink anthers. Filaments are longer than style with stigma.

14

- Spikes are loose. Petals brown scarious; stamens with brown anthers. Filaments are shorter than style with stigma.

16

14

 Spikes are 0.8-1 cm in diameter. Leaves with narrow-winged petioles. Length of petiole nearly equal leaf blade. Leaves grow black in herbarium. P. maxima.
- Spikes are 0.4-0.6 cm diam. Leaves without petioles or with broad-winged petioles, that significantly shorter than leaf blade. Leaves do not grow black in herbarium. P. media.

15

15

 Width of middle vein, measured with hairs, 0.8-1.4 mm, leaf blade are well translucent, light-green, marginal veins weakly developed. Spikes are shorter than sterile part of stalk as 5-8 times; bracts 1.1-2.5 mm length. The base of rosette shoot is nearly naked, without dead leaf sheaths: P. media subsp. media.
- Width of middle vein, measured with hairs, 1.2-2.1 mm, leaf blade are poor translucent, dark-green or grayish, marginal veins well developed. Spikes are shorter than sterile part of stalk as 3-6 times; bracts 1.5-3.2 mm length. The base of rosette shoot covered by dead leaf sheaths: P. media subsp. stepposa.

16(13)

 Leaves lanceolate, broadly lanceolate or narrow elliptic. Capsula commonly with 5 seeds. Main root persistent.

17

- Leaves elliptic, broadly elliptic or egg-shaped. Capsula with more than 5 seeds. Mature plants without main root.

18

17

 Perennials. Leaves petiolate, obtuse. Abaxial sepals scarious, shorter than adaxial. P. schwarzenbergiana.
- Annuals; leaves nearly sessile, acute. Sepals more or less equal. P. depressa.

18(16)

 Capsula with 4 seeds. Stigma is long, greater than 4 mm length. Rhizome is short. Leaves fragile, grow black in herbarium. Bracts more than as 2 times shorter than sepals: P. cornuti.
- Capsula with more than 6 seeds. Stigma is short, not longer than 3 mm length. Rhizome is absent or nearly absent. Leaves do not grow black in herbarium. Bracts not more than 1.5 times shorter than sepals.

19

19

 Capsula acute, with 6-10 more or less large (near 1.2 mm length) seeds. Leaves egg-shaped, heart-shaped at the base, nearly glabrous. Spike not more than as 1.5 times shorter than stalks: P. major.
- Capsula obtuse, sometimes nearly round, with more than 12 small (near 0.8 mm length) seeds (very rare, plants from coast of Finnish bay - var. winteri - number of seeds is smaller, because part of ovules are aborting). Leaves broadly lanceolate, broadly cuneate at the base. Spikes in most cases more than as 1.5 times shorter than stalks: P. uliginosa.
Back