Plantago aucklandica Hook.f.

Rosette plants; primary root 6–25 mm thick. Leaves all basal, 5–13 per rosette, usually brown, rarely green when dry, usually narrowly angular–ovate, sometimes narrowly obovate or obovate, widest point above middle, 50–116 mm long, 14–50 mm wide; axillary hairs rust coloured, usually very obvious, rarely slightly visible, up to 6–40 mm long. Lamina elliptic, rhombic, angular–obovate, widest point usually above or at middle, rarely below middle, 40–116 mm long, usually punctate, rarely not punctate, glabrous adaxially, usually glabrous, rarely with isolated hairs on midrib abaxially; hairs patent and 0.4–2.2 mm; veins (3–)5–7; lamina apex acute or obtuse; base usually attenuate, sometimes cuneate; margins subentire, with 0–24 minute, rarely small, obtuse, regular or irregular teeth up to 0.2–1.6 mm long, glabrous or with isolated hairs, especially on lower margins and petiole; petiole sometimes distinguishable from lamina, 14–55 mm long, 6.3–19.0 mm wide at narrowest point. Inflorescences erect, 1–6 per rosette, 117–338 mm long (including spikes); scapes elongating before anthesis, not ribbed, 62–206 mm long, 6–8 mm thick at fruiting, with isolated hairs, sparsely hairy or densely hairy, becoming glabrous; trichomes patent, type ‘g’; spikes long and linear–ovoid, 36–136 mm long, 6–8 mm thick at fruiting. Flowers 44–132 per spike, densely crowded especially above, more distant below (up to 12 mm apart), half of flowers found in upper 1/3 to 1/4 of spike; bracts 1 per flower, ovate, broadly ovate or very broadly ovate, obtuse, 1.7–2.9 mm long, 0.8–2.1 mm wide (as is), 1.6–2.6 mm wide (flattened); bract margins glabrous or with isolated hairs near apex and outer surface glabrous; bract axils densely hairy, 1.1–2.3 mm long; calyx usually shorter, rarely longer than capsule, 1.8–2.6 mm long, 1.3–2.3 mm wide; calyx lobes ovate or broadly ovate, obtuse, 1.5–2.4 mm long, 1.3–1.8 mm wide; calyx lobe margins scarious and glabrous, middle coloured part 0.4–1.0 mm wide, outer surface glabrous; corolla tube 1.5–2.5 mm long, longer than lobes; corolla lobes narrowly ovate or ovate, acute, 1.1–1.7 mm long, 0.4–0.8 mm wide; stamen filaments 2.3–4.4 mm long, attached to lower half of corolla tube 0.4–1.2 mm from tube base; anthers 1.0–1.5 mm long (including appendix); style 2.3–4.2 mm long, densely hairy throughout; stigma filiform, undifferentiated from style; ovary 0.8–1.4 mm long, 0.5–1.0 mm wide; ovules 2. Capsules ellipsoid, broadly ellipsoid, rhomboid or angular–obovoid, widest at middle or upper half, septum not reaching top of capsule, not forming an upper compartment to one side, 2.0–3.0 mm long, 1.3–2.3 mm wide, 0.6–1.7 mm deep; lower portion 1.0–2.0 mm long, cup-shaped. Seeds 1–2 per capsule, uniform, usually ellipsoid or broadly ellipsoid, rarely rhomboid or broadly rhomboid, brown or dark brown, 1.3–2.0 mm long, 0.8–1.6 mm wide; edges rounded.

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

Flowering: Oct.–Dec.