In Brazil, a new insect-eating plant, Drosera magnifica, was discovered. This species grows to an incredible size of 1.5m, making it one of the three largest sundews known to science. Known only from a single small population at the top of a mountain in Minas Gerais, this species was first discovered on Facebook, when a sundew specialist was reviewing photos taken years earlier by an orchid hunter.

Arquita ancashiana, a new genus of legume shrub from the Andes.

Another new discovery was a 45m tree, Gilbertiodendron maximum, weighing more than 100 tonnes, which is known only in the rainforest in Gabon and is critically endangered.

Begonia ruthiae was found along the trails of the Danum valley in Sabah, in one of the last remaining areas of unlogged lowland forest in Borneo. It was named after Dr Ruth Kiew, who has spent many years studying the limestone flora of both Borneo and peninsular Malaysia.

Among the new orchids discovered and published in 2015 is Dendrobium cynthiae, named for its grower in the US, who acquired it from a dealer. The pretty white flowers have a green lip. The wild origin of the species is unknown, but believed to be New Guinea.

The discovery of a new grass, Sartidia isoalensis, in Madagascar, reveals a fascinating story. The extensive grasslands of the central highlands were been thought to be populated by invasive African species, which replaced forest destroyed by humans; but new research shows that the flora is, in fact, largely made up of native, fire-adapted species of Aristida. The related, non-fire-adapted Sartidia isaloensis survives only on the ledges of sandstone cliffs in the Isalo national park, out of reach of annual fires. The only other Sartidia species known to have existed is believed to be extinct.

Exploration of a previously understudied area of coastal evergreen thicket and woodland in north-east Mozambique has led to the discovery of 36 new range-restricted species, including Ochna dolicharthros, a 60cm-tall shrub with dark green glossy leaves and large, bright yellow flowers.

Myrcia ramiflora is one of 22 new species of Myrtaceae from the Mata Atlantica of Brazil.

Perhaps the most exciting legume discovery of 2015 is Oberholzeria etendekaensis, a succulent shrublet, which is not only a new species but also in a new genus. It is known only from a single locality with 30 individuals in the Kaokoveld Centre of Plant Endemism, north-western Namibia.

Four genera new to science were discovered in 2015. The first of these was Jaffrea, a shrub in the buckthorn family Rhamnaceae, which is specific to metal-rich soils in New Caledonia.

Canavalia reflexiflora, a striking papilionoid legume related to the Brazilian jack bean (a crop wild relative), was also described in 2015. Rather than being discovered in the field, this plant was first recognised by a Brazilian researcher who was examining specimens in the Kew herbarium.