Plantago lanceolata is a perennial herb, with slightly toothed leaves 10-15cm long, usually lanceolate forming basal rosettes. The flower stem can reach up to 45cm in length, the stem being covered in long silky hairs (Clapham, et al. 1987), and can be deeply furrowed (Rose, 1981). The flowers are brown, in short spikes on furrowed stalks, with pale yellow anthers. It is a very variable plant which has been divided into numerous varieties and sub-species (Sagar & Harper 1964) on the grounds of hairiness of the leaves, habit and other features. It adapts its habit to environmental factors, being erect in tall vegetation but prostrate under grazing pressure. It can spread vegetatively and so often appears in dense patches.