A taxonomic study was carried out on a bacterial strain, designated KM-45T, isolated from forest soil collected near Daejeon, South Korea. Comparative 16S rRNA gene sequence analysis indicated a clear affiliation of this bacterium to the 'Betaproteobacteria' and that it was related most closely to Chitinibacter tainanensis BCRC 17254T, Formivibrio citricus DSM 6150T and Iodobacter fluviatilis ATCC 33051T (92.4, 91.2 and 88.9 % 16S rRNA gene sequence similarity, respectively). Cells were Gram-negative, facultatively anaerobic, motile and rod-shaped. The strain grew well on R2A medium and utilized a broad spectrum of carbon sources. The G+C content of the genomic DNA was 58 mol% and the predominant ubiquinone was Q-8. Major fatty acids were C(16 : 0), C(16 : 1)omega7c/iso-C(15 : 0) 2-OH, C(18 : 1)omega7c/omega9t/omega12t and C(17 : 0) cyclo. On the basis of the evidence presented, it is proposed that strain KM-45T should be placed in a novel genus and species, for which the name Silvimonas terrae gen. nov., sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is KM-45T (=KCTC 12358T=NBRC 100961T).