Tropical tree named after Leonardo DiCaprio is first new species of 2022

The 4m tall tree from the ylang-ylang family has large yellow-green flowers on its trunk and was discovered in the Ebo Forest in Cameroon.

The tropical tree called after actor and environmentalist Leonardo DiCaprio. Lorna MacKinnon/Kew Gardens/PA Wire

A tropical tree called after actor and environmentalist Leonardo DiCaprio is the first new named plant species of 2022, the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, has said.

Scientists at Kew have selected their top 10 highlights from more than 200 plants and fungi officially named new to science in 2021 – from a killer tobacco plant to a ghost orchid that grows in complete darkness.