Shrubs low; trunk slightly erect. Petiole ca. 1/4-1/3 as long as leaf blade; leaf blade spatulate-ovate, (5-)8-15 × (5-)6-9 mm, abaxially slightly white, pilose when young, adaxially green, glabrous, base cuneate, margin crenate, apex rounded. Male catkin broadly ellipsoid; bracts ligulate-obovate, glabrous. Female catkin ellipsoid; bracts as in male catkin. Female flower: gland adaxial, ca. 1/2 as long as bracts; ovary ellipsoid, slightly obovoid, or ovoid, glabrous. Capsule glabrous.

Gravelly places, rock crevices; 3400-4700 m. S Xizang, NW Yunnan [Bhutan, Sikkim].