Growing in a crack between two walls, I spotted this gorgeous red flower. Tokyo’s ample rainfall allows plants to thrive in the most unlikely places. I love how the flowers provide a concentrated does of fall color. I looked in various plant books but couldn’t find the name. Does anyone know its name in English or Japanese.
Here are some context shots. I love how it fills this dead space, and how the vibrancy of the plant contrasts with the rusting and peeling rail.
Flowers are naturally transitory. This independent plant’s life was even shorter. I took the photos on October 6. Last night, I realized that the plant had been either uprooted or poisoned. It is gone without a trace.
Tokyo Green Space 
Hello,
It look like a Beloperone guttata, his latin name. It is an acanthacae. In French, we called it “plante crevette”, but I don’t know his name in english or japanese.
It seems that it is called ベネペロペ (transliterating the Latin name) or コエビソウ (“little shrimp plant”) in Japanese. It is related to a Japanese native plant called キツネノタマゴ（fox’s eggs): http://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/キツネノマゴ
Hi,
I used to see this plant in Southern Calif, but not up near SF where I am now. It looks like Justicia brandegeana, Shrimp Plant. http://www.cambridge2000.com/gallery/html/P6296730e.html
I like how you spotlight the extraordinary in the every day ordinaries.
This is a shrimp plant aka Justicia brandegeana from the acanthus Family….
http://www.floridata.com/ref/j/just_bra.cfm
J.
Justicia brandegeeana it’s yellow colored cousin is the Pachystachys lutea