An actinomycete, designated strain YIM 56134(T), was isolated from the root of a Chinese medicinal plant, Carex baccans Nees, collected from Yunnan, south-west China, and subjected to a polyphasic taxonomic study. An analysis of 16S rRNA gene sequence similarities showed that strain YIM 56134(T) was a member of the genus Glycomyces, being most closely related to Glycomyces algeriensis NRRL B-16327(T) (99.0 % similarity), Glycomyces lechevalierae DSM 44724(T) (99.0 %), Glycomyces rutgersensis IFO 14488(T) (98.9 %) and Glycomyces harbinensis IFO 14487(T) (98.7 %). Strain YIM 56134(T) could be distinguished from other established Glycomyces species on the basis of relatively low sequence similarity (<97 %). Phenotypic and chemotaxonomic data supported the affiliation of this strain to the genus Glycomyces. The results of DNA-DNA hybridization and some physiological and biochemical tests allowed differentiation of the strain from related Glycomyces species. Therefore, strain YIM 56134(T) represents a novel species of the genus Glycomyces, for which the name Glycomyces endophyticus sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is YIM 56134(T) (=KCTC 19152(T) =DSM 45002(T)).