Plantago triantha Spreng.

Rosette plants; primary root 2–12 mm thick. Leaves all basal, 15–65 per rosette, brown or green when dry, narrowly angular–obovate or angular–obovate, widest point above middle, 4–93 mm long, 2–17 mm wide; axillary hairs rust coloured, not visible or slightly visible, up to 1–3 mm long. Lamina rhombic, ovate, angular–ovate, broadly angular–ovate, widest point usually at middle or below middle, rarely above middle, 3–94 mm long, not punctate, usually glabrous, or with isolated hairs or sparsely hairy, rarely densely hairy adaxially, usually glabrous, sometimes with isolated hairs abaxially; hairs patent or antrorse and 0.1–1.3 mm; veins 1–3; lamina apex usually acute, sometimes obtuse; base attenuate; margins subentire, with 2–6 minute, small or medium or rarely large, obtuse teeth up to 0.4–5.0 mm long, usually glabrous, sometimes with isolated hairs or sparsely hairy; petiole usually distinguishable from lamina, 1–67 mm long, 0.8–4.0 mm wide at narrowest point. Inflorescences erect, 4–42 per rosette, 3–116 mm long (including spikes); scapes usually sessile, sometimes elongating before anthesis, ribbed, 1–108 mm long, 4–9 mm thick at fruiting, with isolated hairs, sparsely hairy or densely hairy, becoming glabrous; trichomes patent, type ‘g’; spikes usually globose, rarely ovoid, 2–8 mm long, 4–9 mm thick at fruiting. Flowers 1–8 per spike, densely crowded; bracts 1(–2 if flower is solitary) per flower, ovate, broadly ovate or very broadly ovate, acute, 1.9–4.2 mm long, 0.6–1.8 mm wide (as is), 1.3–3.4 mm wide (flattened); bract margins usually glabrous, sometimes with isolated hairs at apex and outer surface glabrous; bract axils with isolated hairs or rarely glabrous, 0.2–0.7 mm long; calyx shorter or longer than capsule, 2.6–3.9 mm long, 1.4–3.5 mm wide; calyx lobes narrowly ovate to broadly ovate, acute, 2.5–3.8 mm long, 1.0–2.7 mm wide; calyx lobe margins scarious and glabrous or with isolated hairs, middle coloured part 0.3–1.4 mm wide, outer surface glabrous or with isolated hairs on midrib; corolla tube 1.9–3.3 mm long, longer than lobes; corolla lobes usually narrowly ovate or ovate, rarely broadly ovate, acute, 1.0–1.8 mm long, 0.6–1.3 mm wide; stamen filaments 2.1–4.7 mm long, attached to upper half of corolla tube 0.8–1.8 mm from tube base; anthers 1.0–1.7 mm long (including appendix); style 2.3–5.4 mm long, densely hairy throughout; stigma filiform, undifferentiated from style or rarely with a thin hook; ovary 0.9–1.8 mm long, 0.7–1.6 mm wide; ovules 7–10. Capsules usually ellipsoid, broadly ellipsoid, globose or obovoid, rarely pyramidal, widest at middle or upper half, septum not reaching top of capsule, not forming an upper compartment to one side, 2.1–4.0 mm long, 0.9–3.2 mm wide, 0.7–2.5 mm deep; lower portion 0.6–3.2 mm long, cup-shaped. Seeds 3–10 per capsule, uniform, usually ellipsoid or broadly ellipsoid, rhomboid, ovoid or angular–ovoid, rarely pyramidal, rust, brown or dark brown, 0.9–1.8 mm long, 0.4–1.2 mm wide; edges angular or rounded.

[Reproduced from Meudt (2012, New Zealand J. Bot. 50: 101–178) with permission from The Royal Society of New Zealand.]

Flowering: Dec.–Feb.