Shrubs low, almost creeping, to 0.4 m tall, rarely erect to 0.8 m tall. Branchlets spreading, glabrous or puberulent when young, unarmed. Buds brown, ovoid, 4-6 mm, sparsely pubescent, apex acute. Petiole (1.5-)3-6 cm, puberulent, scattered stalked glandular; leaf blade reniform to orbicular-reniform, 3-6 × 4-7(-8) cm, glabrous or pubescent along veins abaxially, base shallowly cordate or subtruncate; lobes 3(-5), broadly triangular, margin coarsely sharply serrate, apex obtuse; terminal lobe slightly longer than lateral ones. Racemes pendent, lax, 2-4 cm, (3-)5-7-flowered; rachis and pedicels pubescent and sparsely glandular hairy; bracts ovate-orbicular, rarely oblong, 1.5-2 mm. Flowers bisexual; pedicel 2.5-4 mm. Calyx purple, glabrous; tube shallowly cupular to subpelviform; lobes erect, purple or red tinged yellowish green, spatulate-orbicular, 1.5-2.5 mm. Petals red or purple, subflabellate to obovate or square, sometimes subcuneate, 0.7-1.3 mm. Stamens subequaling petals. Ovary glabrous. Style stout, subequaling stamens, deeply divided for ca. 1/2 its length or more. Fruit red, ovoid, 0.7-1 cm in diam., glabrous. Fl. May-Jun, fr. Jun-Aug.

Coniferous or mixed forests, forest margins, mossy rocky slopes; 1000-1500 m. Heilongjiang, E Jilin, SE Liaoning, E Nei Mongol [Japan, Korea, Russia; North America].