What is buckhorn plantain?

Buckhorn plantain is a low-growing perennial weed that settles into lawns, pastures and roadsides all over Pennsylvania. It came over from Europe long ago and is now so common that most people walk past it without a second look. Buckhorn plantain identification is easy once you know to look for the ribbed leaves and the short, cone-shaped seed head on a tall bare stalk.

It isn’t dangerous, and it isn’t hard to pull. The trouble is that it seeds heavily and does best exactly where lawns are already struggling, so a handful of plants can turn into a patchy, weedy section of yard over a few seasons.

Buckhorn plantain identification: what to look for

Start at ground level. The plant forms a flat rosette, and one crown can produce several clumps of leaves side by side.

• Leaves: Long and narrow like a spearhead, often up to a foot long if unmowed. Three to five deep, parallel ribs run from base to tip and you can feel the ridges on the underside. Edges are smooth or barely toothed, and leaves often twist a little.
• Seed stalk: A tall, leafless, grooved stalk rises well above the leaves, topped by a short, dense head that looks like a little brown bullet or cone.
• Flowers: The flowers are tiny, but when the head is blooming a ring of white pollen-bearing parts circles it like a halo. Blooming runs from late spring through summer.
• Roots: A short, tough crown with a mass of fibrous roots.

Where it grows in Pennsylvania

Buckhorn plantain likes sun and it handles dry, compacted soil better than most lawn grasses. You’ll find it along driveway edges, on sunny slopes that burn out in July, near sidewalks, in thin lawns on shallow or gravelly ground, and in hayfields and roadside strips across central PA.

Seeds sprout in spring and fall, and the seedlings can establish even under fairly tall grass. Where turf is thick and healthy it shows up only here and there; where turf is thin or mowed very short it can take over whole patches.

Buckhorn plantain look-alikes

Its cousin, broadleaf plantain, grows in the same lawns but has wide oval leaves and a long, slender seed spike shaped like a rat’s tail. Many yards have both.

From a distance, buckhorn clumps can look like coarse grass or tall fescue clumps. Get down close: grasses have a stem with a sheath and fine parallel veins, while buckhorn has a broad, slightly fleshy leaf with a few bold ribs and grows from a rosette.

How to get rid of buckhorn plantain

For a few plants, pulling is honestly the best answer. Push a dandelion fork or narrow trowel in next to the crown, pry it out when the soil is moist, and fill the hole with a pinch of soil and grass seed. Get the crown or it will regrow.

• Mow smart: Mowing knocks off seed heads but won’t kill the plant, and it can flower again below the blade. Mowing a bit higher, around 3 to 3.5 inches for most PA lawns, helps the grass shade out new seedlings.
• Fix the conditions: Compacted, droughty soil favors plantain. Core aerating in fall, overseeding with a grass suited to the site, and fertilizing on a sensible schedule all tip the balance back toward your turf.
• Herbicide: For widespread infestations in a cool-season lawn, broadleaf lawn products containing 2,4-D, MCPP (mecoprop) or MCPA, often in two- or three-way mixes, and products with triclopyr are what extension services recommend. Apply when the plant is actively growing; fall is usually the best time, with mid-spring second. Expect to need a repeat treatment.

Penn State researchers have documented buckhorn plantain in Pennsylvania turf that no longer responds well to 2,4-D after years of repeated use. If the usual product isn’t working, try one with a different active ingredient, such as triclopyr, instead of spraying the same thing again.

Always read and follow the product label; the label is the law. Check that it’s labeled for your type of grass and for lawns. Anyone applying herbicide for hire in Pennsylvania needs a PA Department of Agriculture pesticide applicator certification, so if you want the whole lawn treated, hire a licensed lawn-care company.

Keeping it from coming back

Buckhorn plantain is mostly a sign of a thin, stressed lawn. The long-term fix is turf that’s thick enough to keep seeds from finding bare soil: mow higher, aerate compacted spots, overseed thin areas in late summer or early fall, and water deeply during long dry spells if you can.

Pull stray plants before their seed heads ripen, and don’t let a roadside or field edge next to your lawn go to seed all summer. A little attention each fall goes a long way.

Questions we get about buckhorn plantain

Similar weeds

Broadleaf PlantainPlantago majorDandelionTaraxacum officinaleWhite CloverTrifolium repens