Pogostemon is a large genus from the family Lamiaceae, first described as a genus in 1815. It is native to warmer parts of Asia, Africa, and Australia. The best known member of this genus is patchouli, Pogostemon cablin, widely cultivated in Asia for its scented foliage, used for perfume, incense, insect repellent, herbal tea, etc. In 1997, it was proposed for the genus to be split into three subgenera— Allopogostemon Bhatti & Ingr., Dysophyllus (Blume) Bhatti & Ingr., and Pogostemon sensu Bhatti & Ingr. based on numerous morphological characteristics. However, the significant variability in these traits as well as possible convergent evolution within this genus has made classification of species challenging. Some members of the genus (ie. Pogostemon erectus,Pogostemon stellatus, Pogostemon helferi) are grown ornamentally in the aquarium hobby and are used for aquascaping. Selected species Species include: Pogostemon amaranthoides Benth. Pogostemon andersonii (Prain) Panigrahi Pogostemon aquaticus (C.H.Wright) Press Pogostemon atropurpureus Benth. Pogostemon auricularius (L.) Hassk. - southeast Asia Pogostemon barbatus Bhoti & Ingr. Pogostemon benghalensis (Burm.f.) Kuntze Pogostemon brachystachyus Benth. Pogostemon brevicorollus Y.Z.Sun Pogostemon cablin (Blanco) Benth. - South Asia & southeast Asia Pogostemon championii Prain Pogostemon chinensis C.Y.Wu & Y.C.Huang Pogostemon crassicaulis (Benth.) Press Pogostemon cristatus Hassk. Pogostemon cruciatus (Benth.) Kuntze Pogostemon dasianus A.B.De & Mukerjee Pogostemon deccanensis (Panigrahi) Press Pogostemon dielsianus Dunn Pogostemon elatispicatus Bhoti & Ingr. Pogostemon elsholtzioides Benth. Pogostemon erectus (Dalzell) Kuntze Pogostemon esquirolii (H.Lév.) C.Y.Wu & Y.C.Huang Pogostemon falcatus (C.Y.Wu) C.Y.Wu & H.W.Li Pogostemon formosanus Oliv. - Taiwan Pogostemon fraternus Miq. Pogostemon gardneri Hook.f. Pogostemon glaber Benth. Pogostemon glabratus Chermsir. ex Press Pogostemon globulosus Phuong ex Suddee & A.J.Paton Pogostemon griffithii Prain Pogostemon hedgei V.S.Kumar & B.D.Sharma Pogostemon helferi (Hook.f.) Press Pogostemon heyneanus Benth. - South Asia & southeast Asia Pogostemon hirsutus Benth. Pogostemon hispidocalyx C.Y.Wu & Y.C.Huang Pogostemon hispidus (Benth.) Prain Pogostemon kachinensis (Mukerjee) Panigrahi Pogostemon koehneanus (Muschl.) Press Pogostemon linearis (Benth.) Kuntze Pogostemon litigiosus Doan ex Suddee & A.J.Paton Pogostemon lythroides (Diels) Press Pogostemon macgregorii W.W.Sm. Pogostemon manipurensis V.S.Kumar Pogostemon membranaceus Merr. Pogostemon menthoides Blume Pogostemon micangensis G.Taylor Pogostemon mollis Benth. Pogostemon mutamba (Hiern) G.Taylor Pogostemon myosuroides (Roth) Kuntze Pogostemon nelsonii Doan ex Suddee & A.J.Paton Pogostemon nepetoides Stapf Pogostemon nigrescens Dunn Pogostemon nilagiricus Gamble Pogostemon paludosus Benth. - southern India Pogostemon paniculatus (Willd.) Benth. Pogostemon parviflorus Benth. Pogostemon peethapushpum Pradeep Pogostemon peguanus (Prain) Press Pogostemon pentagonus (C.B.Clarke ex Hook.f.) Kuntze Pogostemon petiolaris Benth. Pogostemon philippinensis S.Moore Pogostemon plectrantoides Desf. Pogostemon pressii