Onidokoro (Dioscorea Tokoro) オニドコロ（鬼野老）

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The onidokoro (Dioscorea tokoro) is native to east Asia and can be found across Japan, producing tiny (about 5mm in diameter) cream green flowers from July to August. It's in the yam family but unlike other yams, the onidokoro's thick rhizome is extremely bitter and contains toxic compounds like dioscorine, making it generally inedible. 

2026/7/5

Lysimachia Clethroides (Gooseneck Loosestrife) 丘虎の尾（オカトラノオ）

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The gooseneck loosestrife (Lysimachia clethroides) is native to east Asia and can be found across Japan, producing white flowers from June to August. It's edible and used to be eaten in Japan as a famine plant (although it tastes bitter and astringent). The plant's Japanese name is "Okatora no o," which translates into "tiger tail growing on hills," after its flower spikes looking like tiger tails.  

2026/7/5 With a marmalade hoverfly

Double-Flowered Roses of Sharon 八重咲きの木槿

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The rose of Sharon (Hibiscus syriacus) produces single and double-flowered blooms. Single-flowered blooms are elegantly beautiful while double-flowered ones are gorgeous. I like both!

2026/7/1

Johnson Grass (Sorghum Halepense) セイバンモロコシ（西播蜀黍）

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Johnson grass or Johnsongrass (Sorghum halepense) is native to the Mediterranean region of Europe and Africa, parts of Western Asia, and the Middle East, came to Japan as an invasive plant in around 1945, and can now can be found across the country but Hokkaido (i.e., the northernmost part of Japan). I looked up the origin of the name, finding that the plant is named after an Alabama plantation owner, Colonel William Johnson, who introduced the plant to his farm in around 1840 as a prospective forage. Johnsongrass, however, has been found to become poisonous under stress (e.g., frost) and be toxic to livestock. 

Despite such hardiness and toxicity, however, Johnsongrass produces tiny and cute flowers.  

2025/6/29

Rose of Sharon (Hibiscus syriacus) 木槿（ムクゲ）

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The rose of Sharon (Hibiscus syriacus) is native to China, came to Japan at the beginning of the Heian period (794 to 1185), and can be found across Japan. The plant produces simple and double flowered white and pink flowers from July to October and its flowers are used for display at Japanese tea ceremonies in summer.  

2026/7/1

Asian Swallowtail (Papilio Xuthus) ナミアゲハ（並揚羽）

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The Asian swallowtail (Papilio xuthus) is found in Asia, Siberia and the Hawaiian Islands and can be found across Japan. Its female is known to have clearer blue areas in black bands on their hindwings, so most of those in these photos may be female. 

Butterflies usually close their wings when resting but are also known to open their wings to bask in the sun to warm their bodies, which gave me the moment to take these photos. 

2026/6/30

Five-Seeded Plume-Poppy (Macleaya Cordata) タケニグサ（竹似草）

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The five-seeded plume-poppy (Macleaya cordata) is native to China, Taiwan, and Japan and can be found across Japan. Its Japanese name is "takeni gusa," which translates into "plant similar to bamboo," after it having hollow stems like bamboos. 

The plant shows its beauty in various ways. Spindle shaped white things (scroll down) are buds. Things that look like sparklers are flowers, which contain beautiful thread shaped white stamens and orange pistils (scroll down). Its brown capsules are also beautiful. 

2026/7/1

Hydrangea Serrata Var. Yesoensis F. Cuspidata Cv. 四季咲き姫紫陽花（シキザキヒメアジサイ）

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These are Hydrangea serrata var. yesoensis f. cuspidata cv., a type of mountain hydrangea. Their Japanese name is "shikizaki hime ajisai," which translates into "hydrangea blooming all year round." As the name suggests, the hydrangeas bloom for a longer period, i.e., the six months from June to December (not throughout the year though). Another feature is that the blooms change color at different pace one by one, resulting in various shades of pink, blue and purple. 

Their blue and purple color is beautiful but their bluish, pinkish, and purplish sepia gradients evoke a sense of nostalgic beauty. (Scroll down!)

Below are the shots of various hydrangeas. Hope you enjoy them, too!

Hydrangea macrophylla 'Ayesha' (Popcorn hydrangea)

Hydrangea changing from pale green to white then to pale blue
Hydrangea blooming all year round (Hydrangea serrata var. yesoensis f. cuspidata cv.)

Purple and pink lacecap hydrangeas

Various lacecap hydrangeas

Pink mophead hydrangea

Kurenai lacecap hydrangea (Hydrangea serrata var. 'Kurenai')

Oakleaf hydrangea (Hydrangea quercifolia)

Tea of heaven 'Mikata-yae' (blue Hydrangea serrata)

Nettle-leaved hydrangea (Hydrangea hirta)

White and whitish hydrangea

Annabelle hydrangea (Hydrangea arborescens 'Annabelle')

2023/5/28

2023/5/28

Antilles Mottlegill (Panaeolus Antillarum) ツヤマグソタケ（艶馬糞茸）

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It was great fun finding mushrooms that hadn't existed a few days earlier. They've just popped up for the past couple of days, during which it rained heavily due to a typhoon. Google Lens identifies them as antilles mottlegill (Panaeolus antillarum) but I'm not sure. 

Many mushrooms are safe to touch and eat (and tasty!) but some are not. In Japan, 30 to 70 people are treated for mushroom poisoning every year. The Japanese ministry of agriculture, forestry, and fishery has a website on 10 most typical poisonous mushrooms in Japan (in Japanese only).   

2026/6/30

East Asian Mallotus (Mallotus Japonicus) アカメガシワ（赤芽柏）

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East Asian mallotus (Mallotus japonicus) is native to East Asia and can be found across Japan. The tree is dioecious, producing male and female flowers on separate trees from June to July. The trees in this post are all female with female flowers, producing clusters of fruits and seeds (scroll down) in two months. The three to four branched red parts of the female flowers are stigmas.

2026/6/29

Buckwheat (Fagopyrum Esculentum) ソバ（蕎麦）

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The buckwheat (Fagopyrum esculentum) is native to southwestern China and grown in Hokkaido and other prefectures in Japan but it's unusual for it to grow on the sidewalk like this. The plant produces white and pink flowers twice a year in Japan, i.e., summer buckwheat, which flower from late June to early July, and autumn buckwheat, which flower from early September to mid-October. Those in these photos should be summer buckwheat.

Many tourists come to Japan to eat tempura, sushi, ramen, wagyu, etc., but when you want to give your stomach a break, I would recommend a soba noodle. When your stomach doesn't need a break, you can of course enjoy having a soba noodle with tempura on it (i.e., tempura soba) or a soba noodle together with oyako don (chicken and egg rice bowl) or katsu don (Japanese pork cutlet and egg rice bowl), both of which you should generally be able to have at most soba noodle restaurants. 

2026/6/28

Japanese Spirea (Spiraea Japonica) シモツケ（下野）

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The Japanese spirea (Spiraea japonica) is native to China, Korea, and Japan and can be found across Japan, producing pink flowers with a beautiful gradient from pale to bright pink from May to August. The plant is named "shimotsuke" in Japanese after the Shimotsuke province or the current Tochigi prefecture where the plant was found for the first time in Japan. Its autumn leaves are also beautiful (scroll down)!

2026/6/28

Dendropanax Trifidus 隠れ蓑（カクレミノ）

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The Dendropanax trifidus is native to east Asia and can be found across Japan. The tree produces male and hermaphrodite flowers from June to July and then fruits, which turn black purple in late autumn. 

Its Japanese name is "kakuremino," which translates into "invisibility cloak," after the leaf looking like Tengu's magic cloak, which makes the wearer invisible like Harry Potter's invisibility cloak. Tengu are a type of mischievous yokai (supernatural beings) appearing in Japanese folklore. Imagining Harry Potter wearing Tengu's cloak made me chuckle😆.

The Dendropanax trifidus leaves change generally from a lobed to an ovate shape but some aren't lobed or ovate, which makes it difficult to identify the tree.  

2026/6/27

2023/7/21

Lespedeza (Bush Clovers) 萩（ハギ）

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The bush clover is native to east Asia and can be found across Japan. It's known as an autumn plant in Japan and its Japanese name "hagi" is a kigo or a seasonal word or phrase associated with a particular season used in traditional forms of Japanese poetry for autumn, but bush clovers actually flower from July to September and I once found a tree flowering in December (scroll down).

Bush clovers are known to produce pink flowers but they also have white flowers (Lespedeza buergeri) and some (Lespedeza  japonica bailey cv. versicolor) produce pink and white flowers on the same tree. 

2026/6/27

Broadleaf Plantain (Plantago Major) セイヨウオオバコ（西洋大葉子）

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The broadleaf plantain (Plantago major) is native to Eurasia while the Chinese plantain (Plantago asiatica) is native to east Asia and both can now be found across Japan. The former is larger than the latter but otherwise they resemble each other very much, so I can't tell which those in these photos are. The Plantago major flowers in summer and the Plantago asiatica from April to September in Japan. When I took these pictures, most had no flowers but I found one with many tiny cream flowers drooping after rain. 

  

2026/6/26

Sawtooth Oak (Quercus Acutissima) クヌギ（櫟）

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The sawtooth oak (Quercus acutissima) is native to North East Asia and can be found across Japan. The tree is known for its acorns but its calybia and cupules are beautiful and so are its flowers, produced from April to May (scroll down), which always remind me of a "noren" or bead curtain hung at the entrance of many izakaya restaurants in Japan😆.     

By the way, the term "noren" has another meaning in Japan, that is, goodwill for accounting and tax purposes because noren, which often has a trade name on it, is believed to represent customers' trust and brand value. Noren or goodwill is generally amortized over 20 years or less under Japanese GAAP and 5 years for Japanese tax purposes but not amortized but impaired when devalued for IFRS purposes. Why so different?  

As a relatively conservative country, Japan has preferred to take a conservative approach that goodwill, i.e., value in excess of market value, should decline as time goes by. Japan also doesn't like an impairment test, which could be manipulated by the management. Which approach would you choose?   

2026/6/26 Calybium and cupule

Marvel of Peru (Mirabilis Jalapa) オシロイバナ（白粉花）

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The marvel of Peru (Mirabilis jalapa) is native to South America, came to Japan at the beginning of the Edo period (1603-1868), and is now planted for ornamental purposes across the country. It produces white, red, yellow, pink, and variegated flowers from late June to October. Its another name "four o'clock flowers" is after it usually opening at around 4 p.m.  

Its Japanese name is "Oshiroi bana," which translates into "white makeup powder flower," after the endosperm in the black seeds looking like white makeup powder.

2026/6/24

Pokeweed (Phytolacca Americana) 洋種山牛蒡（ヨウシュヤマゴボウ）

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The pokeweed (Phytolacca americana) is native to North America, came to Japan at the beginning of the Meiji period (1868-1912), and can now be found across the country. It produces tiny flowers with white petals and green ovaries from June to September, followed by fruits which are green at first but turn dark purple beautifully when ripe. (Scroll down!) The plant is toxic in its entirety despite its beautiful appearance. 

2026/6/24

Annabelle Hydrangea (Hydrangea Arborescens 'Annabelle') アナベル

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The Annabelle hydrangea (Hydrangea arborescens 'Annabelle') is a cultivar of Hydrangea arborescens. The hydrangea is a late bloomer, producing flowers from May to July, which are lime green at first, turning white and then green again. Below are the shots of various hydrangeas. Hope you enjoy them!

Hydrangea macrophylla 'Ayesha' (Popcorn hydrangea)

Hydrangea changing from pale green to white then to pale blue
Hydrangea blooming all year round (Hydrangea serrata var. yesoensis f. cuspidata cv.)

Purple and pink lacecap hydrangeas

Various lacecap hydrangeas

Pink mophead hydrangea

Kurenai lacecap hydrangea (Hydrangea serrata var. 'Kurenai')

Oakleaf hydrangea (Hydrangea quercifolia)

Tea of heaven 'Mikata-yae' (blue Hydrangea serrata)

Nettle-leaved hydrangea (Hydrangea hirta)

White and whitish hydrangea

2026/6/2

Lily of the Nile (Agapanthus) アガパンサス（紫君子蘭）

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The Lily of the Nile or the African lily is native to Southern Africa, was introduced to Japan during the Meiji era (1868-1912) and can now be found across the country, producing pale purple and white (sometimes pink, which I've never seen) flowers from May to August in Tokyo. The lily is popular for its flowers blooming during the muggy rainy season in Japan (usually from June to mid-July).   

2025/6/20

Himalayan Ash (Fraxinus Griffithii) シマトネリコ（島梣）

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The Himalayan ash (Fraxinus griffithii) is native to subtropical to tropical Asia and can be found in Japan (mainly in southern Japan), producing large panicles of small white flowers from May to June. 

The tree is known to attract Japanese rhinoceros beetles (Trypoxylus dichotomus) but is designated as an invasive species in some wards of Tokyo. 

2026/6/22

Trailing Abutilon (Abutilon Megapotamicum) ウキツリボク（浮釣木、チロリアンランプ）

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The trailing abutilon (Abutilon megapotamicum) is indigenous to Brazil, was imported to Japan during the Meiji period (1868-1912), and can now be found across the country. It produces lantern shaped flowers from May to October in Japan. The red part that looks like a lantern is sepals, the yellow part is petals, and the protruding brown thing is the style.  

2026/6/21

Salt Cedar (Tamarix Chinensis) ギョリュウ（御柳）

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The salt cedar (Tamarix chinensis) is native to Mongolia and northern China, came to Japan in the mid-18th century, and can now be found across the country, mainly in parks and botanical gardens. The tree produces dense plums of pale pink flowers twice a year, in May and from August to September, in Japan. 

Its Japanese name is "gyoryu," which translates into "imperial willow," after its weeping appearance like willows and it being said to be appreciated by Lady Yang, an imperial consort.

2026/6/22

Angel's Trumpet (Brugmansia) キダチチョウセンアサガオ（木立朝鮮朝顔）属

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Brugmansia is native to tropical regions of South America, was introduced to Japan during the Meiji period (1868-1912) for ornamental purposes, and can now be found across Japan. Its flowers resemble Datura metel very much but it's quite easy to tell. Brugmansia flowers face downward while Datura metel upward. They're related and both toxic.

2026/6/21

Woodland Elaeocarpus (Elaeocarpus Sylvestris) 胆八樹（ホルトノキ）

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The woodland elaeocarpus (Elaeocarpus sylvestris) is native to eastern Asia and can be found across Japan. What I like best about the tree is its spin mop-like flowers, which bloom from June to August in Japan. (Scroll down!)

The tree is named "horuto no ki" in Japanese, which translates into "Portugal tree," after an innocent mistake made by Gennai Hiraga (1728 - 1780), a famous Japanese pharmacologist, student of Rangaku (i.e., western learning), physician, author, painter, and inventor (in short, a genius!) in the Edo period (1603-1858). He mistook this tree for an olive tree, which was then called "Portugal tree." Even Homer sometimes nods. Gennai isn't an exception😉!

2026/6/22

Chinese Privet (Ligustrum Lucidum) トウネズミモチ（唐鼠黐）

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The Chinese privet (Ligustrum lucidum) is native to China, came to Japan during the Meiji period (1868-1912), and can now be found across the country. It produces flowers from June to July in Japan and fruits (scroll down) in October, which are green at first and turn purplish black toward winter. The tree's Japanese name is "tou nezumi mochi," which translates into "Chinese mouse mochi," after the fruits looking like mouse droppings and the leaves resembling those of the mochi tree or the elegance female holly (Ilex integra). The fruits of Chinese privet are used in herbal medicine despite their mouse dropping like appearances. 

The Chinese privet is widely planted in urban areas (e.g., Tokyo) because it's highly tolerant against air pollution, heavy urban smog, and poor soil conditions. 

2026/6/22

Platanus × Acerifolia (London Plane) モミジハスズカケノキ（紅葉葉鈴懸の木）

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The London plane (Platanus x acerifolia) is a hybrid of the oriental plane and the American sycamore, coming to Japan during the Meiji period (1868-1912), and can now be found across the country. The tree produces male and female flowers from April to May in Japan, often seen scattered on the ground after the rain. The tree's Japanese name is "momiji ha suzukake no ki," which translates into "maple leaf platanus," after its leaf shape.

The London plane is aesthetically pleasing throughout the year with their flowers, fruits, and autumn leaves (scroll down). The trees in my neighborhood are too large (10 meter high), so I've seen its fruits and male flowers fallen on the ground but not those still on the trees.  

2026/6/21

Oriental Lady's Thumb (Persicaria Longiseta) イヌタデ（犬蓼）

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The Oriental lady's thumb (Persicaria longiseta) is native to China and south eastern Asia and can be found across Japan. The plant produces generally pink (and sometimes white) flowers from April to November. The flowers, however, have no petals, and what look like petals are calyxes, which are so cute.  

     

2026/6/21

Platycodon Grandiflorus (Balloon Flower) 桔梗（キキョウ）

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The balloon flower (Platycodon grandiflorus) is native to eastern Asia and can be found across Japan, producing beautiful white and purple flowers from June to September in Japan. The Japanese name of the clasping Venus' looking-glass (Triodanis perfoliata) is "balloon flower plant" after their similar flower shapes and colors (but not the size).  

Surprisingly, the balloon flower was called "morning glory" during the Manyo period (from the mid-7th to the mid-8th century) in Japan because then beautiful flowers blooming in the morning were all called morning glory. Do you find it inclusive or sloppy?

This reminded me of another inclusiveness or sloppiness issue about the colors of Japan, specifically, blue and green. If you are interested, read "Goryeo Celadon and Colors of Japan."

2026/6/22

2026/6/22

Duranta Erecta (Golden Dewdrop) デュランタ

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The golden dewdrop (Duranta erecta) is native to the American tropics but can be found across Japan, producing white, blue, and purple flowers from June to October across the country. After that, the plant produces tiny orange fruits, which, despite their cute appearance, are toxic as well as leaves. 

2020/9/6

2020/9/6

Bamboo-Leaf Oak (Quercus Myrsinifolia) シラカシ（白樫）

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The bamboo-leaf oak (Quercus myrsinifolia) is native to eastern Asia and can be found across Japan. The tree produces flowers from April to May and then fruits, i.e., acorns. What I find most fun is to observe their growth. They're tiny and pale green at first, then getting chubbier while turning matcha green then brown toward autumn. The baby acorns still have styles, which are part of the pistils.  

2026/6/19

Lily (Lilium) ユリ（百合）

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Lilies are native to Asia, Europe, and North America. There are more than 100 wild species around the world and 15 in Japan, producing flowers in various colors from May to August in Japan, of which I've seen pale pink, yellow (scroll down), red (Blackout red), and orange (Thunberg orange). The lily bulb (mainly the Maximowicz's lily's [Lilium leichtlinii]) is edible, often steamed, sauteed or deep-fried (i.e., tempura), as a seasonal delicacy in Japan. So, if you have a chance to come to Japan in winter, don't miss eating lily bulb or "yurine" TEMPURA to enjoy its soft and fluffy texture.  

The lily's Japanese name is "yuri" after the term "yusuri," which means shaking or trembling, because lilies shake and/or tremble in the wind as their stems are thin but the flowers are big.

2026/6/19

Oriental Beetle (Anomala Orientalis) セマダラコガネ（背斑金亀子）

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The oriental beetle (Anomala orientalis) is native to the Philippines and/or Japan and can be found across Japan. Its Japanese name is "semadara kogane," which translates into "Japanese beetle with spots on the back," well describing its features, doesn't it? 

The beetle wasn't a major pest in Japan but it's been known as a garden pest in other countries. A byproduct of globalization. 

2026/6/19

2026/6/19

Cabbage White Butterfly モンシロチョウ（紋白蝶）

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The cabbage white butterfly (Pieris rapae) is native to Europe, Asia, and North Africa, believed to come to Japan before the Edo period (1603-1868). 

Although its English name and Japanese name (which translates into "spot white butterfly") both include the term "white," the male cabbage white butterflies are yellowish. Also, according to Kubota Corporation's website (in Japanese only), the butterflies can tell the male from the female by the wing color because they can see ultraviolet light. The female's wing, which reflects ultraviolet light, looks brighter than the male's wing, which absorbs the light. 

2026/6/19 Likely a female

Chinese Tallow (Triadica Sebifera) 南京櫨（ナンキンハゼ）

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The Chinese tallow is one of my favorite plants for its beauty throughout the year, i.e., spike-like green flowers and three-lobed also beautiful green fruits from spring to summer, gorgeous gradients of red, orange, and yellow leaves in autumn (scroll down!), and chubby white seeds covered in capsules, which are green at first but turn black, in winter. The tree is native to China but can be found across Japan. Its leaves offer comfortable habitats to insects, like nettle caterpillars (scroll down) and yellow spotted stink bugs. 

2026/6/2

2026/6/19

2026/6/19

2021/7/20

2021/7/20

2021/7/20

2021/7/20

2021/7/20

2024/9/6 Nettle caterpillars

Early September

2021/10/18

2021/10/18

2021/10/16

2021/10/16

 

2022/10/20

2022/10/20

2022/10/19

2022/11/28

2022/11/28

2021/12/2

2021/11/25

2021/11/25

2021/12/2

2021/12/2

2023/12/10

2023/12/10

2023/12/10

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南京櫨（ナンキンハゼ）です。中国原産ですが日本でもあちこちで見られます。あまり知られていませんが、一年中楽しめる美しい木です。春から夏にかけては新緑と緑の実。秋は見事な紅葉。そして冬には果皮から真っ白な種が顔を出して楽しませてくれます。しかも虫にも居心地のいい場所を提供しているようです。（蛾の幼虫については上の写真を、黄色斑亀虫の美しい初令（一度も脱皮していない幼虫）についてはこちらの記事をご覧ください！）

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