Many would link the name Plantain to a large cooking banana, but few realise it is the common name applied to a series of ubiquitous herbs within the Plantago genus that belongs to the little known Plantain Family (Plantaginaceae).
Within most grassland and grassy woodland communities, both the indigenous and introduced Plantago species can be found happily thriving amongst the inter-tussock spaces formed by both native and exotic grasses or sedges.
Also known as troublesome lawn weeds, they are often overlooked due to their insignificant plainness. However, the many exotic and native species have unexpected and intriguing values that deserve recognition.
Interesting examples of the exotic species include firstly, Ribwort, Plantago lanceolata known worldwide by kids as the Soldier's Herb, since the flowering heads can be used as plant guns. Generations of kids worldwide have looped the lower part of their flexible flower stems around themselves and run the tightened loops rapidly towards the flower heads. These snap off shooting the head towards its target.
It is also known as White Man's Footprints by the American Indians, as a consequence of the American pioneers wagon trains inadvertently transporting its sticky seeds onto the pristine prairie grasslands of western USA, leaving a trail of plantains in their tracks.
Buckshorn Plantain, Plantago coronopus is the most common and hardiest of all the species, surviving conditions such as poor drainage, brackish swamps and compacted droughty grasslands. It is now referred to as an indicator species for highly saline soils, acting as an alert for land managers in irrigation regions.
Before expounding the culinary virtues of Plaintains, let me introduce a few indigenous species that grow in various native vegetation communities.
In our native grassy woodlands and begging to be planted in your backyard bush tucker patch are a few rare endemic species. These include Plantago paradoxa, Plantago tasmanica and Plantago glabrata along with the more common Variable Plantain, Plantago varia. These plants are not only sources of bush tucker, but also attract delicate Meadow Argus butterflies to your backyard. Following hatching of the butterfly's tiny eggs, the small black larva feast on the underside of plantain leaves.
Native Plantains have also adapted to our cooler alpine regions. Their attractive small rosettes of dark green foliage, are reason enough to trial them in your patch. Create a protected section in your patch using a few large rocks, and introduce Montane Plantain Plantago antartica and Tasmanian Alpine Plantain Plantago daltonii if you have been diligent enough to source and grow the seed.
Lets now explore the medical and culinary assets common amongst most of the Plantains discussed above.
One such medicinal attribute was soon recognised by the early colonists who had had misfortune to brush against stinging nettles (Urtica urens). A speedy cure for the painful sting was derived from the crushed leaves of the plantain. This relief proved a godsend for the many convicts who suffered the punishment of "urtification"(derived from the Latin name Urtica). The cruel punishment of whipping their bare flesh with wads of stinging nettles, created an urgent demand for pain relief supplied by using the astringent qualities of this herb. As an aside, stinging nettles loose their sting once steamed or boiled and can subsequently be enjoyed as a nutritious green.
The astringent within the plantains is also beneficial when applied to cuts and insect bites. Eating the leaves as a salad green is known to assist rheumatic joints and fluid retention. During the dry summer and autumn season, when all the above ground herbaceous growth dies back, its undergrown tuber can be harvested for roasting in the fire's hot embers.
However, the most important culinary and medical attribute of plantain derives out of the ability of the dried seeds to absorb huge quantities water, when soaked or rained upon. This results in their rapid ballooning to over 20 times their original size. This evolutionary feature enables the small hook-like structures on the seeds to protrude prominently, in expectation that they maybe snagged and subsequently transported afar, on the fur of unsuspecting animals.
The aboriginals and early colonists regularly used this absorptive ability to indulge in a sago style of porridge, flavoured by sweeteners such as nectar bearing flowers, native honey or plain sugar. Today, these seeds are packaged and marketed under the trade name of Pysllium, principally sold for its mild laxative qualities.
No longer is plantain just a plain plant. Extensive monocultures are now grown in a number of countries dominated currently by India, in an attempt to satisfy the rapidly expanding markets profiting from this popular health food.
Phil Watson