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Plantain: Plantago major/lanceloata

Can you eat plantain leaves? Yep, but I recommend getting them when they're very young. They make a wonderful addition to salads or put on top of a small open-faced sandwich.

As the leaves get older they get much tougher. The lines you see in the photo are quite stretchy and tough. Supposedly they've been used as a type of floss, but the numerous times I've tried it's been unsuccessful (maybe their teeth were further apart?)

Plantain is usually my go-to herb if I ever get stung. It has an incredible drawing capability and will draw out toxins, stingers, and splinters. You can use it as a spit poultice or chop and grind it up as a regular poultice. Of course, relief only comes if you are willing to put enough on there and leave it on for at least 20-30 minutes and sometimes longer.

If I get stung by a wasp or other stinging beast, I usually commit an hour to poulticing the area. This ensures that I won't wake up in the middle of the night, or in the morning, with continued pain, redness, and swelling.

Plantain is very soothing to the skin and therefore great to use as a mild demulcent inside the body as well - soothing to stomach, throat, and lungs. You can blend the leaves (remove the strings) and freeze for use as a poultice, in smoothies, or mixed with some honey for a soothing expectorant.

I like to prepare plantain oil to use in balms, lotions, and salves.

Identifying them isn't difficult. The leaves usually stay close to the ground and have distinct veins going from stem to tip. Their flowers pop up on long, wiry stems and they produce small tuft like seeds. You can collect the seed heads and sauté them up with a little olive oil and garlic or pull the seeds off to sprinkle over yogurt and fruit.