Local Herb ID // Plantago Major

.biodiversity.
There are so many local plants that people take for granted. They use incredibly harmful poisons to eradicate them from their grassy deserts, when these plants are in fact beneficial to you and to the long term health of your environment.

The average person spends lots of time, money and aggravation to achieve what is assumed to be the perfect yard, when they are actually contributing to environmental harm, and killing our soil, which is the most important substance for life.

Everything goes back to the Earth.

.plantago major.
 (Broad Leaf Plantain)
Not to be confused with banana plantain*

.habitat. is pretty much anywhere! Though I really find them the most in sunny areas with lots of stone, or concrete sidewalks. Even in our garden, they tend to favor the stone path, patio or stairways.
I like to know the beneficial uses of wild herbs that grow locally, because you never know!

.history.
The Plantago family is in my opinion, one of the most useful herbs for both food and medicine. It is native to most of Europe and Asia, where it's healing properties have been used for thousands of years. Thomas Broken Bear Squier explains in his book Herbal Folk Medicine, that many Native American tribes referred to Plantago as "White Man's Foot" since it seemed to follow white invaders wherever they spread their settlements in the New World . Indeed it is listed as one of the top Sacred Herbs of the Ancient Anglo Saxons, and considered an "Old World" medicine.

Bradford Angier, a well known herbal medicine author refers to plantago as "Soldier's herb" because of it's common historic use in battle to treat the wounded since it was readily available to forage in wartime. Soon it became a naturalized medicine to the Americas, used in colonial folk medicine, and even being adapted by some Native tribes.

.family medicine.
For me, most herbalism I know has been experiential and experimental, with training in some herbology courses. I really believe after all of this, that hands on experience with these plants is a must.

When we were youngins, learning foraging from our alternative grade school professors, camp councilors, family, and other teachers, some of us chewed plantago to keep our mouths moist on hot summer hikes, and kept it close to hand when addressing the sting and itch from summertime bug bites.
Bugs..
One of my brothers (yay brothers! I love my little bros!) has his formal education as a Biologist, and currently works in Arbor Inventory, identifying invasive pests, blight and tracking the movement and damage of these critters to our native species, and local environment.

He often comes to visit me in Columbus, and in the summer months is covered in bug bites working deep in the woods, despite his best efforts to bathe in bug spray.

Last summer, he desperately asked me if I had anything in my "crazy witch lady concoctions" that could help with the itch...

I took him to the garden to show him Plantago, to which he exclaimed "That will never work!"

Patiently I harvested fresh leaves, as he muttered skepticism under his breath. I took the Plantago leaves inside, diced them into a mushy, pesto like consistency, and did a quick 10 minute olive oil infusion with the fresh leaf matter. I strained out the newly infused oil and rubbed his bite covered arms and legs down with the plantago oil, as he was shaking his head still as skeptical as ever. We decided to play Nintendo Super Mario (our tradition as 80's babies to pass the time), and after 10 minutes I turned to him and asked:


"So how is the itch?"

He turned to me, eyes wide in disbelief and exclaimed, "Woah, you need to bottle and sell this shit!"

And an herbalist was born! BOOM.

I don't want to "bottle and sell that shit" because as a cultural herbalist, my belief is that our knowledge is there to help others and pay it forward. This does not mean that herbalists cannot create products to sell, everyone needs to make a living, and it has always been the best way to share the amazing healing powers of herbs with everyone. Plus, I make an amazing Raw Honey & Plantago Salve... I just also believe every household should know how to use Plantago themselves, just in case.

My hope is that we each provide a piece of the puzzle to begin to help and heal the world.

ok, enough of that...back to why you came here.

In addition to benefits to help stop the itch and sting from bugs, Plantago has a whole array of important herbal and nutrition benefits. I learned early on from teachers, family, and community, the healing properties of the herb, which has been administered as a poultice or tincture to infected cuts and abrasions. Many of documented historical use and current clinical studies have shown Plantago's benefit to help heal infections in the blood, and has been used to treat blood and skin disorders.  

I like to make a strong infusion and use it as part of my Nettle hair rinse.

We eat, drink and use Plantago for all sorts of reasons. Most recently when I developed an ear infection after a road trip, I thought I'd have to go to Urgent Care, it was so painful. Instead, I first made a strong double infusion of the leaves and seeds, and used the strained liquid to treat my ear. I used it as a wash, and also took 1oz of strong fresh leaf infusion every 2 hours, for about 14 hours of the day, and finally got to sleep. Within a day and a half, the horribly sore ear was almost completely better.

I love to add Plantago leaves to our smoothies and juicing, since the herb is a lot like a leafy green, and is high in iridoid glycosides(mostly found in plants), as well as tannins and mucilage (probably why this herb helps my Celiac stomach so much! Lots of soothing, anti-inflammatory constituents! Very recently confirmed by the German commission E clinical studies).

 The German Commission E has also found constituents in Plantago that help to soothe and heal the lungs, and because the plant is demulcent in nature, it is often found as an ingredient in herbal cough syrups and lozenges. 

I add a honey tincture concentrate to my own homemade throat lozenges! Something I will create a DIY post about later down the road!

Healthy Digestion
Did you know that Psyllium, yes the same stuff you spend your dollars on in the stores as a digestive aide to help ya go, is in fact a type of plantain leaf plant in the Genus Plantago. --- P. Ovata to be exact, and it looks a lot like P. Major above. Many types of Plantago seeds can be used for the same reasons, and it is advantageous to see what you may have growing in the yard already. I would be surprised if you didn't find evidence of Plantago in any yard in the Midwest.

If you learn your local "weeds" there is no reason you can't get this product for free, right from your own yard (shhhh don't tell the people at Metamucil....)

I will often include the fresh Psyllium seeds from the stalks of mature Plantago in hot cereal, or when I bake gluten free at home, the addition of the seeds impart a nice texture, and also provide much needed fiber and mucilage that helps with healthy daily bowel . The whole seed stalk can be eaten, they can be grilled, steamed, eaten raw, pickled, you name it. I personally love them pickled with garlic,dill, peppercorns and a slice of lemon, they taste a bit like pickled baby corn.

I have found that the fresh seeds have been helpful with those who have chronic constipation, and have not found relief from other products, and sometimes get better results from fresh instead of dried Psyllium.

Mrs. M. Grieves author of A Modern Herbal, still an herbal authority, (although posthumously), recommends Plantago in a gentle infusion for diarrhea, and other stomach disorders, skin ailments and issues relating to toxic exposure, specifically venomous bites. She explains that the whole plant, from the sweetish, watery yellow roots, to the broad leaves and sturdy seed stalks are edible, medicinal and overall useful to have around. I definitely recommend this set of references.

.nutrition benefits.
And if none of that amazing info entices you, how about just the plain old nutritional benefits of Plantago?
Plantago is also very high in essential minerals like Iron and Calcium, and have a ton of vitamin A, making them a great food source raw or cooked, and easy on the stomach. Like romaine lettuce, plantago is also high in fiber and get this, protein! The Journal, Ecology of Food & Nutrition, cites studies measuring the following nutrients in varieties of Plantago such as our P. Major, P. Lanceolata, and P. Ovata: Na, K, Ca, Mg, Fe, Cu, Zn, Mn and P), fatty acids, vitamins (vitamin C and carotenes). The leaves, and especially the seed stalks have protein (not unlike other seed proteins!) If your tummy is a rumbling when you are spending time out in the wilds, chowing down on some wild plantago isn't a bad idea!

.Soil Fixer.
Plantago is a beneficial garden "weed" (such a loaded word!), and has the ability to help replenish certain nutrients to your garden, and attract local pollinators. One essential nutrient that Plantago provides is Nitrogen, which is essential to grow things like Tomatoes (and other nightshades) because it is one nutrient that Tomato plants cannot produce themselves. If your plants are not doing well, think about allowing some companion Plantago!
Consider what happens when we replace all of these plants with foreign grasses in sterile lawns. How many hundreds of thousands or millions of acres of potential food are we stealing from our local critters? How much topsoil toxification, erosion and runoff are we creating by removing all of the deeply rooted "weeds" ? Grass is not a soil fixer, but many "weeds" are. Learn to love your Dandelions, Plantago, Violets, Dead nettles, Cat's paw, and Clover! They are some of the first foods of the year for honey bees too!
Not to mention the over 4,000 bees indigenous to the US, some of which are be listed as endangered!

.how // when to harvest. 
 For eating as a raw or cooked green, sautee-ing, or adding to sauces, one should look for younger, tender leaves. They will be anywhere from 1/2" to 3" and then they start to get really tough and fibrous.
Same goes for the seed stalks if your looking to eat them as a veggie, young and tender, will be smaller and greener than the other plants.
This is also the best stage for pickling, I like to pickle the young seed shoots like baby corn. Young shoots and seeds tend to have a richer taste (less grassy than more mature shoots).

For poultices, tinctures and other medicines, using a combination of young and older plants is ok for poultices, especially because of the extra fiber to hold it together. If making tinctures you can also mix and match, but I have this feeling that younger leaves may be easier to infuse and extract from being more tender.

Syrups, cough remedies, honey tinctures, are best done with younger plants, since you do not want to use high heat to extract with raw honey, a tender leaf or stalk will give you an infusion without hurting your raw honey. 

Extra Fiber, unless you like the tough chewiness of the big leaves, the mature seed stalks make a great addition to yogurt, cereal, baked goods and other foods.
 
Next time you see this amazing "weed" I hope you will start thinking of it as your best friend in the garden!

Disclaimer: This blog and all information contained in it, is told through my own herbalist experience and studies, and should not be considered a form of medical consult, treatment or advice for your own ailments, and is to be used solely as an educational reference. ***NEVER pick and eat a plant that you are not 100% sure of. When learning plant identification, it is always advisable to learn in person from an experienced forager or other such professional.

Copyrights: this blog, and all photos and artwork (unless otherwise noted) are the artistic and intellectual property of Kat Firor Colque, will not be used, copied or re-purposed without express written permission from Kat Firor Colque.