The flora of Japan comprises a large assemblage of plant species which can be found in

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

, such as

sakura The cherry blossom, or sakura, is the flower of trees in ''Prunus'' subgenus '' Cerasus''. ''Sakura'' usually refers to flowers of ornamental cherry trees, such as cultivars of ''Prunus serrulata'', not trees grown for their fruit (although ...

, katsura, momiji and

azalea Azaleas ( ) are flowering shrubs in the genus ''Rhododendron'', particularly the former sections ''Rhododendron sect. Tsutsusi, Tsutsusi'' (evergreen) and ''Pentanthera'' (deciduous). Azaleas bloom in the spring (April and May in the temperate ...

. There are many species which are endemic to Japan.

Diversity

Japan has significant diversity in flora. Of approximately 5,600 total vascular plant species, almost 40% are

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found only in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also foun ...

. This richness is due to the significant variation in latitude and altitude across the country, a diversity of climatic conditions due to

monsoons A monsoon () is traditionally a seasonal reversing wind accompanied by corresponding changes in precipitation but is now used to describe seasonal changes in atmospheric circulation and precipitation associated with annual latitudinal oscil ...

, and multiple geohistorical incidences of connections with the mainland.

Vegetation types

Japan consists of roughly 4 vegetation zones that are delineated by temperature and precipitation: the alpine region, subalpine region, summer-green broad-leaved forest region and evergreen broad-leaved forest region. Due to its substantial length of over 3,000 km from north to south and its mountain ranges that can exceed 3,000 meters, Japan's vegetation varies by latitude and by altitude. Evergreen forests tend to appear in the southern half of the Japanese mainland, with broad leaf forests, subalpine, and alpine appearing with increasing frequency to the north and near mountains.

Evergreen broad-leaved forest region

The evergreen forest zone can be found along the coasts of the southern half of Japan and is most common zone in the

Ryukyu Islands The , also known as the or the , are a chain of Japanese islands that stretch southwest from Kyushu to Geography of Taiwan, Taiwan: the Ryukyu Islands are divided into the Satsunan Islands (Ōsumi Islands, Ōsumi, Tokara Islands, Tokara and A ...

Shikoku is the smallest of the List of islands of Japan#Main islands, four main islands of Japan. It is long and between at its widest. It has a population of 3.8 million, the least populated of Japan's four main islands. It is south of Honshu ...

and,

Kyushu is the third-largest island of Japan's Japanese archipelago, four main islands and the most southerly of the four largest islands (i.e. excluding Okinawa Island, Okinawa and the other Ryukyu Islands, Ryukyu (''Nansei'') Ryukyu Islands, Islands ...

as well as parts of southwestern

Honshu , historically known as , is the largest of the four main islands of Japan. It lies between the Pacific Ocean (east) and the Sea of Japan (west). It is the list of islands by area, seventh-largest island in the world, and the list of islands by ...

with equal longitude. This region rises up to an elevation of 750 meters near Tokyo. At the coasts, the dominant forest canopy species are '' Castanopsis cuspidata'' and '' Machilus thunbergii''. Inland, trees belonging to the genus ''

Quercus An oak is a hardwood tree or shrub in the genus ''Quercus'' of the beech family. They have spirally arranged leaves, often with lobed edges, and a nut called an acorn, borne within a cup. The genus is widely distributed in the Northern Hemisp ...

'' are dominant. In lower layers, trees and shrub species include ''

Camellia japonica ''Camellia japonica'', known as common camellia, or Japanese camellia, is a species of Camellia, a flowering plant genus in the family Theaceae. There are thousands of cultivars of ''C. japonica'' in cultivation, with many colors and forms of flo ...

'', '' Neolitsea sericea'', ''

Aucuba japonica ''Aucuba japonica'', commonly called spotted laurel, Japanese laurel, Japanese aucuba or gold dust plant (U.S.), is a shrub () native to rich forest soils of moist valleys, thickets, by streams and near shaded moist rocks in China, Korea, and Jap ...

'', and '' Eurya japonica''. It is a characteristic of this zone that all these are

evergreen In botany, an evergreen is a plant which has Leaf, foliage that remains green and functional throughout the year. This contrasts with deciduous plants, which lose their foliage completely during the winter or dry season. Consisting of many diffe ...

species.

Summergreen broad-leaved forest region

These forests can be found in central Japan above 1,000 meters altitude and throughout parts of

Hokkaido is the list of islands of Japan by area, second-largest island of Japan and comprises the largest and northernmost prefectures of Japan, prefecture, making up its own list of regions of Japan, region. The Tsugaru Strait separates Hokkaidō fr ...

at elevations between 700 and 1,600 meters. These forests are also called Fagus crenata forests due to the prevalence of this tree species. On the western side, common species include '' Daphniphyllum macropodum'', '' Cephalotaxus harringtonii'', and ''

''. On the eastern side facing the Pacific Ocean, important species include ''Ulmus japonica'', ''Arachniodes standishii '', and ''Laportea macrostachya''. This region has been particularly affected by human development and clearing of natural forests. Cleared lands tend to be replanted with '' Larix kaempferi'', ''Cryptomeria japonica '', and ''

Chamaecyparis obtusa ''Chamaecyparis obtusa'' (Japanese cypress, hinoki cypress or hinoki; or , ) is a species of cypress native to central Japan in East Asia, and widely cultivated in the temperate climate, temperate northern hemisphere for its high-quality timber ...

''.

Subalpine and alpine regions

In Honshu, from 1,600 to 2,500 meters, and Hokkaido at slightly lower altitudes, character species in the subalpine zone are ''

Vaccinium vitis-idaea ''Vaccinium vitis-idaea'' is a small evergreen shrub in the heath family, Ericaceae. It is known colloquially as the lingonberry, partridgeberry, foxberry, mountain cranberry, or cowberry. It is native to boreal forest and Arctic tundra throug ...

'', '' Vaccinium ovalifolium'', ''

Neottia cordata ''Neottia cordata'', the lesser twayblade or heartleaf twayblade, is an orchid of upland bogs and mires that rarely exceeds in height. It was formerly placed in the genus ''Listera'', but Molecular phylogenetics, molecular phylogenetic studies ...

'', '' Coptis trifolia''. Distinguishing trees include ''

Abies mariesii ''Abies mariesii'', also known as Maries' fir and , is a species of fir native to the mountains of central and northern Honshū, Japan. It grows at altitudes of 750–1,900 m in northern Honshū, and 1,800–2,900 m in central Honshū, always ...

'', '' Larix kaempferi'', and '' Tsuga diversifolia''. Above 2500 meters, vegetation has to contend with significant snowfall and high winds. Genera that can survive in these conditions include ''Phyllodoce'' and '' Harrimanella''.

List

Cercidiphyllum ''Cercidiphyllum'' is a genus containing two species of plants, both commonly called katsura. They are the sole members of the monotypic family (biology), family Cercidiphyllaceae. The genus is native plant, native to Japan and China and unrelate ...

Japanese maple ''Acer palmatum'', commonly known as Japanese maple, palmate maple, or smooth Japanese maple (Korean: ''danpungnamu'' []; Japanese: ''irohamomiji'' [] or ''momiji'' []), is a species of woody plant native to Korea, Japan, China, eastern Mongol ...

*Azalea *Chrysanthemum *Reynoutria japonica * Japanese beech * Konara *

Cherry blossom The cherry blossom, or sakura, is the flower of trees in ''Prunus'' subgenus '' Cerasus''. ''Sakura'' usually refers to flowers of ornamental cherry trees, such as cultivars of ''Prunus serrulata'', not trees grown for their fruit (although ...

* Pinus pumila * Hinoki cypress *

Japanese red pine ''Pinus densiflora'', also called the Japanese red pine, the Japanese pine, or Korean red pine, is a species of pine tree native to East Asia and Siberia. In China, the plant is known as 赤松 (pinyin: chì sōng, literally "red pine"). Distrib ...

* sakaki evergreen * Japanese red cedar *

Pinus luchuensis ''Pinus luchuensis'', commonly called Luchu pine or Okinawa pine, is a species of conifer in the family Pinaceae endemic to, and locally abundant in the Ryukyu Islands of Japan. It was once threatened by habitat loss in the wild, where it can be ...

* Cryptotaenia japonica * Acer ginnala *

Wasabi Wasabi (Japanese language, Japanese: , , or , ) or Japanese horseradish (''Eutrema japonicum'' syn. ''Wasabia japonica'') is a plant of the family Brassicaceae, which also includes horseradish and Mustard plant, mustard in other genus, genera. ...

Nandina ''Nandina domestica'' ( ) commonly known as nandina, heavenly bamboo or sacred bamboo, is a species of flowering plant in the family (biology), family Berberidaceae, native plant, native to eastern Asia from the Himalayas to Japan. It is the onl ...

* Japanese holly * Japanese iris * Juniperus procumbens * Pittosporum tobira *

Hosta ''Hosta'' (, synonym (taxonomy), syn. ''Funkia'') is a genus of plants commonly known as hostas, plantain lilies and occasionally by the Japanese name gibōshi. Hostas are widely cultivated as shade-tolerant foliage plants. The genus is placed ...

* Styrax japonicus *

Wisteria floribunda ''Wisteria floribunda'', common name , is a species of flowering plant in the family Fabaceae, native plant, native to Japan. (''Wisteriopsis japonica'', Synonym (taxonomy), synonym ''Wisteria japonica'', is a different species.) Growing to , ''W ...

* Japanese black pine * Prunus × yedoensis * Pinus amamiana * Acer japonicum *

Sciadopitys ''Sciadopitys'', commonly called umbrella pines, is a genus of a unique conifers now endemic to Japan. The sole living member of the family Sciadopityaceae is '' Sciadopitys verticillata'', a living fossil. The oldest fossils of ''Sciadopitys'' ...

* Myoga *

Chamaecyparis pisifera ''Chamaecyparis pisifera'' (Sawara cypress or Sawara ) is a species of false cypress, native to central and southern Japan, on the islands of Honshū and Kyūshū.Farjon, A. (2005). ''Monograph of Cupressaceae and Sciadopitys''. Royal Botanic Ga ...

* Gastrodia amamiana *

Juglans ailantifolia ''Juglans ailantifolia'' (synonyms ''J. cordiformis'' and ''J. sieboldiana'' and '' J. mandshurica'' var. ''sachalinensis''), the Japanese walnut (), is a species of walnut native to Japan and Sakhalin. Description It is a deciduous tree growi ...

* Yomogi

Publications

The flora of Japan is extensively described in scientific publications such as : * Makino, T., 1940. Illustrated flora of Japan. Hokuryukan (with renewed editions in 1961 and 1996) * Ohwi, J., 1965. Flora of Japan (in English). A combined, much revised, and extended translation. Smithsonian Institution, Washington D.C. * Iwatsuki, K. (岩槻, 邦男), Boufford, D.E. & Ohba, H. (大場, 秀章), 1993–2020. Flora of Japan. Kodansha ** vol. 1 : Pteridophyta and Gymnospermae (1995) ** vol. 2a-c : Angiospermae, Dicotyledoneae, Archichlamydeae (1999–2006) ** vol. 3a-b : Angiospermae, Dicotyledoneae, Sympetalae (1993–1995) ** vol. 4a-b : Angiospermae, Monocotyledoneae (a 2020, b 2016) ** General index (2020) More over, here are some publications of interest about the Japanese flora : Tomitarô Makino, who was lecturer of botany at the imperial university of Tokyo, published a large amount of contributions from 1901 to 1914 collectively called "Observations on the flora of Japan" (and before that some other under various names among which "''Plantæ Japonenses novæ vel minus cognitæ''") * Makino, T., 1901–1905. Observations on the Flora of Japan (Fascicula 1–5) * Makino, T., 1896–1914. Observations on the Flora of Japan. published within the botanical journal (in Japanese : 植物学雑誌, romanized : "Shokubutsugaku Zasshi") edited by the Botanical Society of Japan

References

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