JAPONICUM Siebold ex Miquel, 1866
Sedum japonicum Siebold ex Miquel, Ann. Mus. Bot. Lugd. Bat. 2: 156. 1866.
Distribution : China, Taiwan, Japan, Korea.
Description (by 't Hart & Bleij in IHSP, 2003) :
Perennial fleshy herbs with tufted creeping and rooting much-branched stems.
Leaves alternate, narrowly cylindrical-oblong, rounded.
Inflorescences cymes.
FIowers 5-merous, sessile, sepals basally free, shortly spurred, oblong-linear, obtuse or rounded, slightly cuneate at the base, ± 3 x 1 mm, petals ovate-spatulate, acute, slightly cuneate at the base, yellow, slightly longer and wider than the sepals.
Cytology : 2n = 18, 20, 30, 38
Morphologically as well as cytologically an extremely variable species. Unfortunately, the name is an illegitimate homonym of S. uniflorum Rafinesque (1810) (= Phedimus stellatus).
4 subspecies :
Sedum japonicum Miquel ssp. boninense (Tuyama) R. Stephenson comb.nov.
Sedum japonicum Miquel ssp. japonicum
Sedum japonicum Miquel ssp. oryzifolium (Makino) R. Stephenson comb.nov.
Sedum japonicum Miquel ssp. uniflorum (Hooker & Arnott) R. Stephenson comb.nov.