Evergreen

[Seed Plant Encyclopedia #011] What are the species of the cypress family? Photo list

The Cupressaceae family consists of evergreen, rarely deciduous, trees or shrubs. Leaves are scale-like, needle-like, or linear, arranged alternately, oppositely, or whorled. Flowers are unisexual, monoecious, rarely dioecious. Male flowers are borne at the tips of branches. Female flowers are also often borne at the branch tips and have scale-like structures arranged oppositely or whorled...

2022.07.25

Seed Plant Encyclopedia

[Seed Plant Encyclopedia #010] What are the species of the Sciadopitys family? Photo list

The family Sciadopityaceae consists of evergreen trees. It is a monotypic family, endemic to Japan, comprising only one genus and one species. Molecular phylogenetic analysis suggests it branched off from the Taxaceae and Cupressaceae families in the early to mid-Permian period. Fossil records indicate that it was found in Laurasia, particularly in Europe, for most of the Cenozoic era...

2022.07.24

Seed Plant Encyclopedia

[Seed Plant Encyclopedia #009] What are the species of the Podocarpaceae family? Photo list

The Podocarpaceae family consists of evergreen trees or shrubs. The leaves are flattened linear to ovate, sometimes scale-like, spirally arranged alternately, sometimes oppositely. They are dioecious (having separate male and female plants). Male flowers have numerous stamens spirally arranged on the flower axis. Female flowers have a single ovule at the tip of the receptacle. Many female flowers have fleshy, fleshy scales...

2022.07.23

Seed Plant Encyclopedia

[Seed Plant Encyclopedia #007] What are the species of the Pinaceae family? Photo list

The Pinaceae family consists of evergreen, sometimes deciduous, trees or shrubs. The leaves are needle-shaped or linear. The flowers are unisexual and monoecious. Male flowers have numerous stamens arranged spirally. Female flowers consist of numerous scales arranged spirally. Each scale is composed of an outer bract and an inner seed scale, fused at their bases...

2022.07.22

Seed Plant Encyclopedia

[Seed Plant Encyclopedia #004] What are the species of the Ephedra family? Photo list

The Ephedraceae family generally consists of shrubs, sometimes vines, and rarely small trees. It includes only the genus Ephedra. It is distributed across southwestern North America, southern Europe, northern Africa, southwestern and central Asia, northern China, and western South America, and is widely found in arid regions. Temperate regions...

2022.07.15

Seed Plant Encyclopedia

[Seed Plant Encyclopedia #001] What are the species of the Cycadaceae family? Photo list

The family Cycadaceae is a family of plants belonging to the order Cycadales in the class Cycadae. All extant species are evergreen woody plants. The leaves are pinnately compound, with long, pointed leaflets. Numerous leaves grow at the tip of the stem, with the base remaining on the stem. The family is dioecious, with flowers borne terminally or laterally on the stem. The stamens (microsporophylls) are scale-like...

2022.07.13

Seed Plant Encyclopedia

What are the differences between Japanese holly, golden holly, bean holly, and boxwood? We'll explain how to distinguish between similar species! Why are the flowers so plain to humans but so popular with insects? Do they rely on birds for seed dispersal?

Japanese holly (Ilex crenata) is well-known for being commonly cultivated in gardens as a hedge, but it is originally a species that grows wild in Japan. While distinguishing it from other varieties is not particularly difficult due to its distinctive leaves, there are numerous cultivated varieties, which can make identification a little challenging. Here, we will discuss...

2021.09.21

plant

What's the difference between Kintoranoo and Koushunkazura? We'll explain how to distinguish between these similar species! Did their ancestors evolve to secrete oil instead of nectar, only to then "revert" back to their normal appearance?!

Malpighiinae and Kadsunokazura are two of the most popular species in Japan belonging to the Malpighiaceae family, and are often cultivated as ornamental plants in gardens, but they are also frequently confused. The biggest difference between them is that Malpighiinae is an evergreen shrub, while Kadsunokazura is a woody vine...

2021.09.20

plant

What are the differences between Plumbago auriculata and Plumbago prunifolia? We explain how to distinguish between similar species! Are there two types of stamen length? Only insects with long mouths can suck nectar from the flowers!?

Plumbago (Plumbago auriculata) and Plumbago rhododendron are two horticultural varieties of the Plumbaginaceae family that produce somewhat unusual blue flowers. In Japan, they are cultivated in gardens for ornamental purposes, and are easily confused due to their similar names, blue flowers, and similar flower shapes. However, their classification is based on their genus level...

2021.09.16

plant