Armed shrubs to 2 m tall, much branched, pubescent overall with dense, stalked, 5-11- rayed stellate hairs; prickles yellow, recurved to 7 mm long. Leaves unequal-paired, ovate, 5-8(-11) long, 2-7(-8.5) cm wide, apically obtuse or acute, basally cordate or truncate, 5-7-sinuate lobed, tomentose above with short-stalked, stellate hairs, beneath with long-stalked hairs and straight needlelike prickles; petiole 1.5-4 cm long. Inflorescences extra-axillary scorpioid racemes, 2-6 cm long, sparingly branched; peduncle 1.5 cm; pedicel 4-15 mm long. Flowers with calyx 4-7 mm long, the lobes lanceolate, 3-5 mm long, unequal, pubescent and prickly; corolla blue-purple or white, rotate, 1-2 cm long, the lobes ovate or ovate-lanceolate, 2-5 mm long, obtuse; filaments 1 mm long, anthers oblong, 5-6 mm long; style stellate pubescent. Berry shiny orange, globose, 0.8-1.3 cm across; fruiting pedicel 1-2 cm long; fruiting calyx reflexed; seeds subdiscoid, 2 mm across.

TAIPEI: Tanshui, Ho 577; Hsintien, Ho 390. ILAN: Wuchieh, Wang 1491. TAOYUAN: Yungan, Kao 8774. HSINCHU: Hengshan, Peng 12268; Hsiangshan Farm, Peng 3283. TAICHUNG: Fengyuan, Leu 1026; Takeng, Wang 285. NANTOU: Hsinyi to Hoshe, Leu 1068. KAOHSIUNG: Mori s. n. 1908. PINGTUNG: Kaoshu, Kao 10192; Hengchun, D’Arcy 19285. TAITUNG: Lanyu Is., Chang 9093.

Widespread in tropical Asia. Taiwan, a common weed in southern areas at lower elevations.