The plant family Moringaceae contains only one genus, Moringa, and Moringa oleifera is widely cultivated for its young seed pods and leaves used as vegetables and for traditional herbal medicine. In this study, we report the complete chloroplast genome of M. oleifera, assembled from whole-genome high-throughput sequencing reads, as a resource for future studies on the phylogeny and evolution of Moringaceae. The chloroplast genome was 160,600 bp in length, with a large single-copy (LSC) region of 88,577 bp, a small single-copy (SSC) region of 18,883 bp, separated by two inverted repeat (IR) regions of 26,570 bp each. It was predicted to contain 131 genes, with an overall GC content of 36.78%. Phylogenetic analysis of 71 protein-coding sequences of 13 plant plastomes showed that M. oleifera is closest to Carica papaya.

Sarcandra glabra is a perennial evergreen subshrub, with high ornamental and medicinal value. Using the Illumina high-throughput sequencing data, its chloroplast genome is well assembled and characterized. The complete chloroplast genome is 158,872 bp in length with a typical quadripartite structure: a pair of inverted repeats (IRs) of 26,122 bp for each, an 88,182 bp large single-copy (LSC) region and an 18,445 bp small single-copy (SSC) region. It was composed of 128 genes and they were identified 84 coding genes, 8 rRNA genes, 36 tRNA genes. Phylogenetic analysis confirmed that the position of S. glabra lay within the order Chloranthales instead of Piperales simply according to classical morphological taxonomy.

Reevesia thyrsoidea Lindl. is an important ornamental plant with horticultural, industrial, and timber usages. In this study, we reported a complete chloroplast genome of R. thyrsoidea, which was quadripartite and 161,786 bp in size, including two inverted repeats (25,466 bp for each) that separated one large single-copy (90,565 bp) and one small single-copy (20,289 bp) regions. The chloroplast genome contained 131 unique genes (86 protein-coding, 37 tRNA, and 8 rRNA), and 17 of them were double copies. Phylogenetic analysis using the chloroplast genome data indicated that R. thyrsoidea was sister to the species in the family Malvaceae.

Feng Shui woodlands are naturally or artificially formed green areas in southern China. They are precious for maintaining ecosystem balance in modern semiurban environments. However, they are generally small and geographically isolated from each other, and the status of genetic diversity of the plant species within them has been almost neglected. Therefore, we studied the genetic diversity of the endangered Erythrophleum fordii in eight Feng Shui woodlands (a total of 1,061 individuals) in Guangzhou, a large city in southern China, using microsatellites. For comparison, one population with 33 individuals sampled in a nature reserve was also studied. Although our results indicate that significant demographic declines occurred historically in E. fordii, such declines have not resulted in consistent reductions in genetic variation over generations in Feng Shui populations in the recent past, and the levels of genetic variation in these populations were higher than or comparable to the genetic variation of the population in the nature reserve. In addition, our parentage and paternity analyses indicated widespread and potential long‐distance pollen flow within one Feng Shui woodland, indicating the presence of an unbroken pollination network, which would at least partially alleviate the genetic erosion due to habitat fragmentation and the unequal gene contributions of E. fordii parents to their progenies when favorable recruitment habitats are absent under most of the parent trees. Overall, our results suggest that E. fordii in Feng Shui woodlands may not be driven to extinction in the near future. Nevertheless, uncontrolled fast urban development with a lack of awareness of Feng Shui woodlands will cause the local extinction of E. fordii, which has already happened in some Feng Shui woodlands.

Based on morphological comparison and literature consultation, a new species, Metapetrocosmea alba (Gesneriaceae), is confirmed from Bach Ma National Park, central Vietnam. This new species is similar to M. poilanei, but differs by its longer and white funnelform corolla and three staminodes. And it is easy to distinguish the new species from M. cycnostyla by its distinct stem, and the shape and size of leaf blade. A detailed morphological description and photographic illustration of the new species are provided along with ecological information and geographic distribution.