Nihon (plant) explained

Nihon is a genus of flowering plants in the family Boraginaceae. It includes five species native to Japan (5 species) and Korea (1 species).

• Nihon akiensis – Japan (Honshu)
• Nihon japonicum – central and southern Japan
• Nihon krameri – southern Korea and Japan (southern Hokkaido and northern and central Honshu)
• Nihon laevispermum – Japan (central Honshu)
• Nihon proliferum – Japan (western and central Honshu)

The species in the genus were previously placed in genus Omphalodes. A 2014 phylogenetic study concluded that these five formed a distinct lineage. The new genus was given the name Nihon, the Japanese name for Japan.^[1]

Notes and References

1. Otero, Ana & Jiménez-Mejías, Pedro & Valcárcel, Virginia & Vargas, Pablo. (2014). Molecular phylogenetics and morphology support two new genera (Memoremea and Nihon) of Boraginaceae s.s. Phytotaxa. 173. 241–277. 10.11646/phytotaxa.173.4.1.