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Ribwort plantain (Plantago lanceolata)

Datasheet

Description
Click on the "Nutritional aspects" tab for recommendations for ruminants, pigs, poultry, rabbits, horses, fish and crustaceans
Plantain
Plantain seeds
Ribwort plantain (Plantago lanceolata), leaves, Japan
Ribwort plantain (Plantago lanceolata), inflorescence, Hawaii
Ribwort plantain (Plantago lanceolata), habit, Spain
Common names 

Ribwort plantain, English plantain, narrowleaf plantain, narrow-leaved plantain, buckhorn plantain, buckhorn, ribgrass, lance-leaved plantain [English]; llantén menor [Spanish]; alpiste pajarero, siete venas [Spanish/Argentina]; plantain lancéolé, plantain étroit, petit plantain [French]; Língua de ovelha, carrijó [Portuguese]; smalle weegbree [Dutch]; Spitzwegerich [German]; dar yapraklı sinirli ot [Turkish]; لِسَان الحَمَل السِّهميّ [Arabic]; 长叶车前 [Chinese]; Подорожник ланцетолистный [Russian]

Species 

Plantago lanceolata L. [Plantaginaceae]

Feed categories 
Related feed(s) 
Description 

Ribwort plantain (Plantago lanceolata L.) is a stemless herbaceous perennial plant, 20 to 80 cm high. It has a thick rhizome and fibrous roots. Leaves are arranged in a dense rosette. Petioles are as long as leaves (10-20 cm long). Leaves are lanceolate, 1 to 3 cm broad and glabrous or sparsely pubescent (more hairy in dry habitats). Inflorescence is a short spike, densely flowered with white flowers. Fruit is a capsule, 3-5 mm long, with 1 to 3 seeds. Seeds are yellow brown to dark brown or black, oblong, 2-3 mm long and mucilaginous when wet (Gurib-Fakim, 2006). The mass of 1000 seeds is 1-1.5 g (Ecoport, 2009).

Its mucilaginous seeds are used as a thickener in the cosmetics and ice-cream industries and as a gelling agent for tissue culture (cheaper than agar-agar). It may be grown as fodder and is considered to be of better quality than Plantago major. Forage yields of special cultivars in New Zealand may reach 20 t/ha (Gurib-Fakim, 2006).

Distribution 

Ribwort plantain originated from Europe and Central Asia. It is now cosmopolitan and naturalized in tropical and southern Africa, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, South America, the West Indies, the Mascarene Islands and Madagascar. In the USA, it is regarded as a noxious weed in 28 states (USDA, 2009).

It grows in disturbed areas, roadsides, open woodlands and grasslands. It is tolerant of drought but will not withstand saline soils. In pasture stands, it responds well to fertilizer but will not benefit as well if mixed with other plants (Gurib-Fakim, 2006). It will not withstand heavy grazing and may disappear from the sward (Mosquera et al., 1999).

Nutritional aspects
Nutritional attributes 

Ribwort plantain has a good nutritive value with high vitamin and mineral contents (Cu, Ca, Se) (Kostuch et al., 1997; Kozowski et al., 1996; Wilman et al., 1997; Moorhead et al., 2002; Bilbao et al., 2007). It is known to contain compounds such as antioxidants and anti-inflammatories (Al-Mamun et al., 2007).

Ruminants 

Cattle

Ribwort plantain is palatable to cattle (Kozowski et al., 1999). It is recommended in pastures including grasses and legumes as it may improve the Cu content (Bilbao et al., 2007). However, it is less consumed than a large variety of grasses or legumes, such as prairie grass, kikuyu (Pennisetum clandestinum), alfafa (Medicago sativa) or white clover (Trifolium repens) (Horadagoda et al., 2009).

In calves, ribwort plantain reduced egg output of gastrointestinal parasites and allowed a slight increase in live weight (Sievers et al., 2006).

Sheep

In sheep grazing swards of white clover, ribwort plantain was fairly palatable (Clark et al., 1985). It proved to be suitable in combination with grass in swards to sustain growth in finishing lambs (Moorhead et al., 2002). It may also be recommended as an alternative to hay (Al-Mamun et al., 2007). However, compared to chicory (Cichorium intybus), it supported less live-weight gain and lower hot carcass weights (Fraser et al., 1996; Deaker et al., 1994). It had less effect than chicory in reducing lamb parasites (Knight et al., 1996).

Pigs 

Ribwort plantain can be fed to weaned piglets as it is a source of fibre. It was included at up to 8% DM in the diet without deleterious effects on pig performance (Lindberg et al., 2006).

There have been attempts to use ribwort plantain in mixtures of herbs acting as growth promoters in pigs in order to replace antibiotics or probiotics, but the results were not consistent (Grela et al., 2007; Dedkova et al., 2006; Grela et al., 2001; Grela, 2000).

Nutritional tables
Tables of chemical composition and nutritional value 

Avg: average or predicted value; SD: standard deviation; Min: minimum value; Max: maximum value; Nb: number of values (samples) used

Main analysis Unit Avg SD Min Max Nb  
Dry matter % as fed 15.7       1  
Crude protein % DM 20.4 7.0 12.2 30.0 8  
Crude fibre % DM 13.6 2.4 11.4 16.1 3  
NDF % DM 41.1 5.4 35.8 48.1 5  
ADF % DM 29.3 5.5 20.4 34.8 5  
Lignin % DM 13.8       1  
Ether extract % DM 2.4 0.9 1.6 3.8 5  
Ash % DM 12.4 1.8 10.7 14.7 4  
Water-soluble carbohydrates % DM 7.2 6.4 3.5 14.6 3  
Gross energy MJ/kg DM 17.5         *
               
Minerals Unit Avg SD Min Max Nb  
Calcium g/kg DM 18.2 4.4 15.3 24.6 4  
Phosphorus g/kg DM 2.8 1.1 1.7 4.3 4  
Potassium g/kg DM 29.7       1  
Copper mg/kg DM 17       1  
               
Ruminant nutritive values Unit Avg SD Min Max Nb  
a (N) % 20.0       1  
b (N) % 52.0       1  
c (N) h-1 0.040       1  
Nitrogen degradability (effective, k=4%) % 46         *
Nitrogen degradability (effective, k=6%) % 41         *

The asterisk * indicates that the average value was obtained by an equation.

References

Bilbao et al., 2007; Clapham et al., 2005; Dougall et al., 1958; Fulkerson et al., 2008; Gomez Cabrera, 2009; Vargas et al., 1965

Last updated on 02/05/2013 17:27:58

References
References 
Al-Mamun, M. ; Tanaka, C. ; Hanai, Y. ; Tamura, Y. ; Sano, H., 2007. Effects of plantain (Plantago lanceolata L.) herb and heat exposure on plasma glucose metabolism in sheep. Asian-Aust. J. Anim. Sci., 20 (6): 894-899 web icon
Al-Mamun, M. ; Hanai, Y. ; Tanaka, C. ; Tamura, Y. ; Sano, H., 2008. Responses of whole body protein synthesis and degradation to plantain herb in sheep exposed to heat. Arch. Tierernähr., 62 (3): 219-229 web icon
Bilbao, E. ; Cid, M. S. ; Brizuela, M. A., 2007. Utilization of Plantago lanceolata L. cv Ceres Tonic by cattle grazing a mixed pasture. Rev. Arg. Prod. Anim., 27 (1): 17-28
Clapham, W. M. ; Foster, J. G. ; Neel, J. P. S. ; Fedders, J. M., 2005. Fatty acid composition of traditional and novel forages. J. Agric. Food Chem., 53: 10068-10073 web icon
Clark, D. A. ; Harris, P. S., 1985. Composition of the diet of sheep grazing swards of differing white clover content and spatial distribution. New Zeal. J. Agric. Res., 28 (2): 233-240
Deaker, J. M. ; Young, M. J. ; Fraser, T. J. ; Rowarth, J. S., 1994. Carcass, liver and kidney characteristics of lambs grazing plantain (Plantago lanceolata), chicory (Cichorium intybus), white clover (Trifolium repens) or perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne). Proceedings of the New Zealand Society of Animal Production 54: 197-200 1994
Dedkova, A. ; Kimicheva, S., 2006. The use of medicinal herb extracts in increasing viability and performance of pigs. Svinovodstvo (Moskva), 5: 25-26
Dougall, H. W. ; Bogdan, A. V., 1958. Browse plants of Kenya - with special reference to those occurring in South Baringo. E. Afr. Agric. For. J., 23 (4): 236-245 web icon
Ecoport, 2009. Ecoport database. Ecoport web icon
FAO, 2009. Grassland Index. A searchable catalogue of grass and forage legumes. FAO, Rome, Italy web icon
Fraser, T. J. ; Scott, S. M. ; Rowarth, J. S., 1996. Pasture species effects on carcass and meat quality. Proceedings of the New Zealand Grassland Association 58: 63-66 1996
Fulkerson, W. J. ; Horadagoda, A. ; Neal, J. S. ; Barchia, I. ; Nandra, K. S., 2008. Nutritive value of forage species grown in the warm temperate climate of Australia for dairy cows: Herbs and grain crops. Livest. Sci., 114: 75-83 web icon
Gomez Cabrera, A., 2009. Banco de muestras Pastos españoles. Servicio de Información sobre Alimentos, Universidad de Cordoba web icon
Grela, E. R. ; Czech, A. ; Baranowska, M., 2001. Effectiveness of herbs additive in weaning piglets. Annales Universitatis Mariae Curie-Skodowska. Sectio EEE, Horticultura 9 (Supplementum): 249-254
Grela, E. R. ; Gruszczyk, M. ; Czech, A., 2007. Efficacy of herbs mixture use in grower-finisher pig diets. Herba Polonica, 53 (3): 343-349
Grela, E. R., 2000. Influence of herbs mixture in pigs feeding on performance and some lipid parameters in blood and backfat. Annales Universitatis Mariae Curie-Sklodowska. Sectio EE Zootechnica, 18: 243-250
Gurib-Fakim, A., 2006. Plantago lanceolata L.. Record from Protabase. Schmelzer, G.H. & Gurib-Fakim, A. (Editors). PROTA (Plant Resources of Tropical Africa / Ressources végétales de l'Afrique tropicale), Wageningen, Netherlands web icon
Horadagoda, A. ; Fulkerson, W. J. ; Nandra, K. S. ; Barchia, I. M., 2009. Grazing preferences by dairy cows for 14 forage species. Anim. Prod. Sci., 49 (7): 586-594 web icon
Kemp, P. D. ; Kenyon, P. R. ; Morris, S. T., 2010. The use of legume and herb forage species to create high performance pastures for sheep and cattle grazing systems. Rev. Bras. Zootec., 39 (Supplement): 169-174 web icon
Knight, T. L. ; Moss, R. A. ; Fraser, T. J. ; Rowarth, J. S. ; Burton, R. N., 1996. Effect of pasture species on internal parasites of lambs. Proceedings of the New Zealand Grassland Association 58: 59-62 1996
Kostuch, R. ; Kopec, S. Editor(s): Gregorova, H. ; Jancovic, J. ; Babel'ova, M., 1997. Influence of herbaceous plant species on the grassland fodder quality. Ecological and biological aspects of fodder crop production. Refereed papers from an international research conference held at Nitra, Slovakia, 23 October 1997.: 152-156 1997
Kozowski, S. ; Swedrzynski, A., 1996. Fodder and landscape aspects of herbaceous meadows. Zeszyty Problemowe Postepow Nauk Rolniczych, 442: 269-276
Kozowski, S. ; Golinski, P. ; Swedrzynska, D., 1999. Plantago lanceolata - a commendable sward component of grasslands?. Management for grassland biodiversity. Proceedings of the International Occasional Symposium of the European Grassland Federation, Warszawa-omza, Poland, 19-23 May, 1997.: 227-231 1997, publ. 1999
Lindberg, J. E. ; Frankow-Lindberg, B. E., 2006. The effect of feeding two grassland herbs on the growth performance of weaned piglets. Sustainable grassland productivity: Proceedings of the 21st General Meeting of the European Grassland Federation, Badajoz, Spain, 3-6 April, 2006: 493-495 2006
Moorhead, A. J. E. ; Judson, H. G. ; Stewart, A. V., 2002. Liveweight gain of lambs grazing 'Ceres Tonic' plantain (Plantago lanceolata) or perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne). Proceedings of the New Zealand Society of Animal Production 62: 171-173 2002
Mosquera, R. ; Gonzalez Rodriguez, A., 1999. Effect of management on changes in cultivated grasslands in dairy systems. Investigacion Agraria, Produccion y Proteccion Vegetales, 14 (1-2): 101-106
Sievers, G. ; Nannig, S., 2006. Effect of supplementary feeding with Plantago lanceolata on the egg output of gastrointestinal nematodes in calves. Archivos de Medicina Veterinaria, 38 (3): 233-238
USDA, 2009. GRIN - Germplasm Resources Information Network. National Germplasm Resources Laboratory, Beltsville, Maryland web icon
Vargas, M.; Urbá, R.; Enero, R.; Báez, H.; Pardo, P.; Visconti, C., 1965. Composición de alimentos chilenos de uso en ganadería y avicultura. Santiago. Ministerio de Agricultura. Instituto de Investigación Veterinaria.
Wilman, D. ; Derrick, R. W. ; Moseley, G., 1997. Physical breakdown of chickweed, dandelion, dock, ribwort, spurrey and perennial ryegrass when eaten by sheep and when macerated. J. Agric. Sci., 129 (4): 419-428 web icon
30 references found
Datasheet citation 

Heuzé V., Tran G., 2015. Ribwort plantain (Plantago lanceolata). Feedipedia, a programme by INRAE, CIRAD, AFZ and FAO. https://feedipedia.org/node/114 Last updated on October 5, 2015, 10:11

English correction by Tim Smith (Animal Science consultant) and Hélène Thiollet (AFZ)
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