Plantago (Plantain) in the Garden

I’ve never done much with plantain because I didn’t have a lot of it in my yard. After moving here though I have found it growing prolifically throughout disturbed soil. There are two varieties of this herb that is sometimes called rib grass. Plantago major has roundish leaves that lie close to the ground while Plantago lanceolata has narrow leaves that stand upright. We have the lanceolata variety here which I find much easier to harvest. Plantain has many benefits. It is great for cuts and insect bites gotten outside where it is easy to pick a leaf and wrap it around the injury as a dressing. For this reason it has been called ‘nature’s band-aid’. An added benefit is that it stops bleeding and is anti-inflammatory. It is also good as a tea for lung problems such as bronchitis. Seeds of this plant can also be used as a mild laxative as would psyllium be used. It has also been used as a diuretic and for diarrhea. Its use as an antitoxin is less common. It is not native to North America and the Native Americans would refer to it as “white man’s footprint” knowing that Europeans had been there with seed. I’ve been picking and drying this herb a lot lately and plan to use more of it over the coming year, probably adding it to my ‘Knuckle Balm”.