What is "platycladus"

Platycladus is a distinct genus of evergreen coniferous tree in the cypress family Cupressaceae, containing only one species, Platycladus orientalis, also known as Chinese thuja, Oriental arborvitae, Chinese arborvitae, biota or oriental thuja. It is native to northwestern China, Korea, and the Russian Far East ( Amur + Khabarovsk). It is also now naturalised as an introduced species elsewhere in Asia: eastward to Japan; southward to northern India; and westward to northern Iran.