Illicium fargesii Finet & Gagnepain; I. fargesii subsp. szechuanense (W. C. Cheng) Q. Lin; I. fargesii var. szechuanense (W. C. Cheng) Q. Lin; I. griffithii J. D. Hooker & Thomson var. yunnanense Franchet; I. jiadifengpi B. N. Chang var. szechuanense (W. C. Cheng) Y. W. Law & B. N. Chang; I. szechuanense W. C. Cheng; I. yunnanense (Franchet) Franchet ex Finet & Gagnepain.
Trees to 9(-15) m tall. Perules ovate to lanceolate, largest 4-10 mm. Leaves in clusters of 3-5 at distal nodes; petiole 0.7-2 cm; leaf blade lanceolate to elliptic, 5-10 × 1.5-3.5 cm, leathery, midvein adaxially impressed, secondary veins 6-10(-12) on each side of midvein, abaxially slightly prominent, and adaxially flat or slightly prominent, base attenuate to cuneate and decurrent along petiole, apex acute to shortly acuminate. Flowers axillary or subterminal. Flower peduncle 2-8 mm. Tepals 18-23(-26), pale yellow, sometimes creamy or white, or rarely pink, elliptic-oblong (outer), oblong-lanceolate to tonguelike (largest), or tonguelike (inner), 5-11 × 4-7 mm (outer), 9-15 × 2-4 mm (largest), 7-15 × 1-3 mm (inner), thinly papery (outer) to membranous (middle). Stamens 16-28, 2.5-4.2 mm; filaments 1-2.2 mm; connectives rounded to shortly cuspidate; anthers 1.4-2.4 mm; pollen grains tricolpate. Carpels 8-13, 3-4.5 mm; ovary 1.2-2 mm; style 1.5-2.5 mm. Fruit peduncle 0.5-1.6 cm. Fruit with 8-13 follicles; follicles 11-20 × 6-9 × 2-4 mm. Seeds 6-7 × 4-5 × 2-2.5 mm. Fl. nearly all year but mostly Feb-May, fr. Jun-Oct.
Thickets, forests, open fields, ravines, along rivers, wet places; 1700-3200(-4000) m. W Guizhou, SW Sichuan, Yunnan [NE India, N Myanmar].
The leaves, flowers, and fruit are very poisonous.
