Weeds of Australia - Fact Sheet

Top Scientific Name Synonyms Family Common Names Origin Naturalised Distribution Notes

Scientific Name

Plantago lanceolata L.

Synonyms

Plantago lanceolata L. var. dubia (L.) Wahl.
Plantago lanceolata L. var. lanceolata

Family

Plantaginaceae

Common Names

black jack, black plantain, buckhorn, buckhorn plantain, buckhorn ribgrass, common plantain, English plantain, German psyllium, hen plant, jackstraw, lamb's tongue, lamb's tongues, lance leaf plantain, lance leaved plantain, long plantain, narrow leaf ribwort, narrow leaved plantain, narrowleaf plantain, narrow-leaved plantain, plantain, rat tail, rat-tail plantain, rib grass, rib-grass, ribgrass, ribwort, ribwort plantain, ripple grass, small plantain, snake plantain, wild sago

Origin

Native to northern Africa (i.e. Algeria, Egypt, Libya, Morocco and Tunisia), the Azores, the Canary Islands, Europe, western and central Asia and the Indian Sub-continent (i.e. northern India, Nepal and Pakistan).

Naturalised Distribution

Widely naturalised in southern and eastern Australia (i.e. in eastern Queensland, southern and eastern New South Wales, the ACT, Victoria, Tasmania, many parts of South Australia and south-western Western Australia). Also naturalsied in some parts of the Northern Territory, and on Lord Howe Island and Norfolk Island.

Widely naturalised overseas in tropical and southern Africa, Madagascar, Mauritius, eastern Asia (i.e. China, Japan, South Korea and Taiwan), New Zealand, the USA, Canada, Central America, the Caribbean, South America and several Pacific islands (e.g. French Polynesia, Niue, Tonga, New Caledonia and Hawaii).

Notes

Ribwort (Plantago lanceolata) is regarded as an environmental weed in New South Wales, Victoria and Western Australia.