Balloon Vine (Cardiospermum Halicacabum) 風船蔓（フウセンカズラ）

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The balloon vine (Cardiospermum halicacabum) is native to tropical and subtropical regions, came to Japan during the Meiji era (1868-1912), and is now grown for ornamental purposes across the country. As its name suggests, the balloon vine is known for its balloon shaped fruits but you shouldn't miss its tiny white flowers or dark brown seeds with heart-shaped white spots on them, which are so sweet (scroll down)!

When I was photographing the flowers, the owner came out to give me the seeds. I put them in a pot at home, hoping they come up. 

2026/7/14

Panicled Hydrangea (Hydrangea Paniculata) ノリウツギ（糊空木）

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The panicled hydrangea (Hydrangea paniculata) is native to east Asia and can be found across Japan. The hydrangea look to me resembling oakleaf hydrangea (Hydrangea quercifolia), so I often mistook the latter for panicled hydrangeas and this is my first time seeing the panicled one still in bloom. 

The panicled hydrangea's Japanese name is "nori utsugi," which translates into "glue Deutzia," after their inner bark being used before to make a natural adhesive for washi, i.e., Japanese paper, and their stems resembling those of Deutzia. 

2026/7/15

Yellow Spotted Stink Bug キマダラカメムシ（黄斑亀虫）

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Eggs of yellow spotted stink bugs (Erthesina fullo) hatch into nymphs as below. 

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Below is a record of 2025/6/12 I found their eggs for the first time.

On 12 June 2025 (scroll down), I found a circle the size of a quarter dollar coin on a leaf of Chinese tallow (3rd photo). Then, five days later (i.e., on 17 June), they'd become like in the 2nd photo and for the last day since then, they have changed like in the 1st photo! Every bug is small but you can clearly see each is a yellow spotted stink bug. They've changed not only their appearance but also have started to move. The one in the upper right of the 1st photo was running toward the backside of the leaf. They may not be there tomorrow, which makes me feel a bit sad and relieved a lot.   

P.S.
On 19 June 2025, I went there again to check up on them, finding them like in the 1st photo. All larvae are all gone but two on the eggs in the 1st photo and one each in the 2nd and 3rd photos.

2026/7/16

2026/7/15

Fig (Ficus Carica) イチジク（無花果）

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Fig (Ficus carica) is native to west Asia, came to Japan either in the 1590s through Father Diogo de Mesquita, a Portuguese Jesuit who came to Japan in the 16th century as a missionary, or in around 1630 through China. Its flowers are hidden, growing inside the pear-shaped structure. This is the origin of its Japanese name "無花果," which translates into "no flower fruit." A fig fruit, however, is actually not a fruit but inverted flowers😮.

2026/7/10

Plumbago Auriculata (Blue Plumbago) 瑠璃茉莉（ルリマツリ）

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Blue plumbago (Plumbago auriculata) is native to South Africa, was introduced to Japan during the Meiji era (1868-1912) for ornamental purposes, and can now be found across the country, producing blue and white flowers from May to November. 

2026/7/14

Japanese Camellia (Camellia Japonica) ツバキ（椿）

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A fruit of Japanese camellia. Japanese camellia blooms resemble sasanqua camellia blooms very much but their fruits do not. In autumn, this should look like chocolates.

2026/7/15

2023/11/6

Potato Vine (Solanum Laxum) ツルハナナス（蔓花茄子）

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The potato vine (Solanum laxum) is native to South America, came to Japan during the Taisho era (1912-1926) for ornamental purposes, and can now be found across Japan. Its Japanese name is "tsuru hana nasu," which translates into "vine flower eggplant," after the resemblance of its flowers to those of eggplants. Eggplant or potato? It's so confusing. 

2026/7/14

Loquat (Eriobotrya Japonica) 枇杷（ビワ）

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The loquat (Eriobotrya japonica) is native to China, came to Japan from the 6th to 8th century and is now grown in warm regions, such as Nagasaki and Chiba prefectures. The plant produces flowers from November to February and fruits from May to June. The fruits are orange and shaped like a Chinese lute or pipa (枇杷), which is why the plant is called "pipa" in Chinese while "biwa" in Japanese, both are written in the same Chinese characters but pronounced differently. Although the flowers are plain, the fruits are so orange, and sweet and juicy that the trees in my neighborhood produce many fruits every year but I've never had a chance to taste them.  

By the way, loquats always bring back fond memories of my childhood.

When I was a second-grader, I lived in a town in southern Japan where there were many wild Amanatsu orange and loquat trees. One day my baby brother and I decided to go on a loquat picnic - just the two of us. I got up early and prepared lunch boxes, and after breakfast, we left home for a place with many loquat trees a few kilometers away. As soon as we got there, we started picking these orange fruits, and after that, had lunch there while talking about the harvest that day, i.e., about 20 fresh big loquats, and brought them home.

Looking back, however, something is bugging me. Were these loquat trees wild? Might they be planted trees in a loquat farm? I remember a couple of people there staring at us, not saying anything.

Now I'm pretty sure that that was a loquat farm and they were loquat farmers who were kind and generous enough to let local kids pick the loquats they'd grown without saying anything. I no longer remember exactly where that was, but these orange round fruits always remind me of this small adventure.

2025/11/28

Scarab Beetle 黄金虫（コガネムシ）

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Scarab beetles are quite prevalent and familiar to people in Japan. Actually, there's a song titled "Scarab beetles are rich." The lyrics are based on the lyricist (Ujo Noguchi)'s childhood memories that cockroaches gather in rich people's houses as they're warm and have food and that at that time, cockroaches were called "kogane mushi," which translates into "scarab beetles" in English😆!

Scarab beetles can be highly destructive to lawn and gardens. The adults feed on foliage and flowers, while their underground larvae damage the root systems of turf grass, ornamental plants, and crops. Scarab beetles, however, are so beautiful and their sleeping posture is funnily acrobatic (scroll down). 

2026/7/12

Sphaerophoria ミナミヒメヒラタアブ（南姫扁虻）

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Philadelphia fleabane (Erigeron philadelphicus) is native to North America, came to Japan in around 1920, and can now be found across the country. Actually, the plant is so prevalent as a weed that they're called "binbo gusa" and "binbo giku" in Japanese, which translates into "poor plant" and "poor chrysanthemum" respectively in some areas in Japan. On a Philadelphia fleabane is a tiny hoverfly. It's so tiny but very beautiful. 

2026/7/12

Monk's Cress (Tropaeolum Majus) ナスタチウム/キンレンカ（金蓮花）

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I've been growing herbs recently but this is mainly to use them for cooking but I realize I can enjoy them aesthetically, so I put monk's cress and oregano flowers, and mint in a glass. 

2026/7/12

Small Branded Swift (Pelopidas Mathias) チャバネセセリ（茶羽挵）

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The small branded swift can be seen in east Asia and Oceania. The butterfly resembles the common straight swift very much but the small branded swift has white spots in a circle while the common straight swift (Parnara guttata) has such spots in a straight line. 

2026/7/12

Small Copper (Lycaena Phlaeas) ベニシジミ（紅小灰蝶）

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The small copper (Lycaena phlaeas) flies from March to November in Japan, so it's not unusual to see them but it was my first time to see them, not one but two! Their orange forewings caught my eye. The butterfly's coloration changes slightly across seasons; spring broods are typically brighter while summer ones become darker and more muted. I can't say for sure but one of them seems like a spring brood and the other a summer one. Scroll down to see the two together in a photo.  

2026/7/12

2026/7/12

Water Celery (Oenanthe Javanica) セリ

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The water celery (Oenanthe javanica) is native to east Asia and can be found across Japan, producing small white flowers in August. The plant is aromatic and edible in its entirety including the roots. One of my favorite recipes is ohitashi, i.e., boiling and seasoning them with bonito dashi stock and soy sauce.

2026/7/9

2026/7/9

Aromaticus (Plectranthus Amboinicus) アロマティカス

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The aromaticus (Plectranthus amboinicus) is primarily native to Southern and Eastern Africa and has been seen in Japan since the 2000s. I've taken an early morning walk for more than five years and this is my second time to find herbs growing wild on the sidewalk.   

The one I found for the first time was apple mints. I took several stems home and have planted them in a pot. The incredible resilience of herbs always makes me feel motivated and energized. 

2026/7/10

Asian Jumpseed (Persicaria Filiformis) ミズヒキ（水引）

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The Asian Jumpseed (Persicaria filiformis) is native to East, South, and Southeast Asia and can be found across Japan, producing tiny flowers from August to October. The plant has no petals instead has four sepals, of which three are red and the other is white. Its Japanese name is "mizuhiki," i.e., an ancient Japanese artform of knot-tying, most commonly used to decorate Japanese ceremonial envelopes.

2026/7/5

Japanese Bindweed ヒルガオと虫たち

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The Japanese bindweed (Calystegia pubescens) is native to east Asia and can be found across Japan, producing pale pink flowers from June to August, which attract a variety of bugs, e.g.,  common straight swift butterflies and a marmalade and other hoverflies, as shown in these pictures.  

2026/7/9

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

Ornamental Oregano (Origanum 'Kent Beauty') オレガノケントビューティー

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The ornamental oregano (Origanum 'Kent Beauty') is native to Europe, came to Japan in the late 1990s, and is now grown by many for ornamental purposes. The plant is highly sensitive to humidity, but the subshrub I found grows wild in Central Tokyo, which is humid almost throughout the year. The survivability and resilience of plants often amazes me and this oregano is one of them. 

2026/7/9

Fragrant Evening-Primrose (Oenothera Stricta) マツヨイグサ（待宵草）

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Fragrant evening-primrose (Oenothera stricta) is native to South America, was imported to Japan in the late 19th century, and can now be found across Japan. This evening-primrose resembles common evening-primrose (Oenothera biennis) very much with one easy-to-tell difference, i.e., fragrant evening primroses turn orange as they wither. The other flower in the pictures, which has turned orange, told me these were not common but fragrant evening primroses. 

2026/7/9

Blueberry ブルーベリー

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The blueberry is native to North America but can now be found across Japan, producing flowers from April to May and fruits from early June to early September in Japan. Surprisingly, Tokyo is the largest producer of blueberries in Japan. 

2026/7/9

Goji Berry (Lycium Chinense) クコ（枸杞）

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The goji berry (Lycium chinense) is native to east Asia and can be found across Japan, producing small pale purple flowers from summer to autumn. In Japan, the goji berry is known to be good for eye health, boost the immune system, reduce cellular inflammation, and help regulate blood sugar levels. I didn't know however (and was surprised) that such a plant can grow on the sidewalk in Central Tokyo. I'll definitely come back in autumn to photograph the berries. (I've never seen them before being dried.) 

2026/7/6

2026/7/6

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

Lantana ランタナ（Before Revision: Common Nettle (Urtica dioica) 修正前：セイヨウイラクサ（西洋刺草））

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The common nettle (Urtica dioica) is native to Europe, temperate Asia, and western North Africa and now found worldwide but I didn't know it can grow in a sidewalk gutter like those in these photos in Central Tokyo. I have rhinitis, so I was considering buying a nettle seedling to grow it at home but not anymore!

P.S.

A few days later, I found flowers among the leaves, which made me realize they're not nettles but lantanas. Sorry for the confusion. 

2026/7/5

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