Local Plants: Tsuwabuki (Japanese Silver Leaf; Farfugium japonicum)
This evergreen, known in other countries as the leopard plant or green leopard plant, grows in and around woodlands near the coast. From its thick rhizome (underground stem) come stalks of around 20 to 40 centimeters bearing abundant round leaves. Around October, these are joined by somewhat longer flower stalks that bear daisy-like yellow flowers some 5 centimeters across. The pleasing appearance of the Japanese silver leaf makes it popular as a decorative plant; its leaf stalks, which are edible when young, have traditionally been used in medicine.