Tuberous Indian-plantain

© Iralee Barnard

Common Name: Tuberous Indian-plantain

Scientific Name: Arnoglossum plantagineum

Family: Aster

Longevity: Perennial

Height: 2 - 5 feet

Bloom Period:

June and July

Description: Stems are erect, smooth and grooved. Ovate leaves, mostly at the base of the plant, are thick and smooth with parallel veins. The flower heads are flat-topped with unusual looking white to cream colored flowers.

Comments: It is hard to miss this plant standing tall above the grasses in June. The flower bracts are cylindrical and have winged ribs. The erect, brownish and yellow projections are the male and female flower parts. Below these and above the bracts are narrow, tightly-curled, petal lobes. The seeds are topped by a tuft of bristly hairs used for wind dispersal, which can scatter them great distances. Tuberous Indian-plantain prefers moist, clay soil but grows in a range of soil conditions on open prairies in the eastern half of Kansas.