This time we will introduce you to the plant "Komikansou."
They are apparently distributed west of the Kanto region, and we sometimes see them around our Yoyogi office.
It is written in kanji as "小みかん草" (little mandarin orange). If you stand and look at it from above, you won't notice it, but if you squat down and look under the leaves, you'll see that it is covered with many fruits that are just like small mandarin oranges in color and shape.
It bears a lot of orange fruit. Its surface is not smooth, but has bumps on it.
Branches grow horizontally from the stem, and the leaves grow alternately on the left and right. This is called "alternate growth."
Phyllanthus is a native species, but the invasive species, Long-legged phyllanthus, is also commonly seen. It looks similar to Phyllanthus, but is taller, and while Phyllanthus produces flowers and fruits at the bottom of the branches, Long-legged phyllanthus produces flowers and fruits on the leaves.
This flower has a long stalk, so it is called "naga-e" (long handle).
Long-leaved lily. Flowers and fruits grow on the leaves.
A colony of long-leaved phyllanthus. It seems to be more vigorous than Phyllanthus.
Both the genus Komikuransou and the long-legged Komikuransou have very distinct characteristics, so I think it will be easy to tell them apart once you get used to them.
reference:
"How to Identify 950 Naturalized and Invasive Plants" by Akihiko Mori, published by Hidewa System in 2020. "Planting and Surveying Weeds Encyclopedia" by Genro Asai, published by the National Rural Education Association in 2015.
MURAKAMI Isao