Astranthus cochinchinensis Loureiro, Fl. Cochinch. 1: 222. 1790; Blackwellia fagifolia Lindley; B. padiflora Lindley; Homalium cochinchinense var. pseudopaniculatum (Yamamoto) Li; H. digynum Gagnepain; H. fagifolium (Lindley) Bentham; H. fagifolium var. pseudopaniculatum Yamamoto.

Shrubs or small trees, 2-10 m tall; bark gray-brown or purple-brown; branchlets terete, densely yellowish pubescent when young, gradually glabrescent. Stipules linear to narrowly obovate, to 8 mm, papery, hairy; petiole 2-3 mm (rarely to 6 mm), yellowish pubescent; leaf blade broadly elliptic, elliptic-oblong, or obovate, ca. 2 × as long as wide, 6-15 × 3-8 cm, thickly papery, both surfaces pubescent along midvein and lateral veins, midvein raised abaxially, impressed adaxially, lateral veins 7-9 pairs, anastomosing near margin, conspicuous on both surfaces, margin obtusely serrate, serrate-crenate, or dentate, sometimes minutely so, remotely toothed to entire toward leaf base, base acute, sometimes broadly so, usually cuneate, extreme base sometimes rounded, apex variable, acute to shortly acuminate (acumen to ca. 10 mm) or not. Inflorescence racemelike, (5-)8-15 cm, sometimes with very short branches less than 5 mm; rachis pubescent, hairs spreading; bracts linear to lanceolate, 1-4 mm, papery, pubescent, early caducous. Pedicels 2-3 mm, articulate above middle, densely pubescent, hairs spreading, yellowish. Flowers numerous, inserted along rachis singly or few together in sessile to very shortly pedunculate fascicles, whitish, 7- or 8-merous, 6-9 mm in diam., fragrance-free (once recorded). Calyx tube 2-3 mm, longitudinally ribbed, sparsely pubescent, hairs spreading or semispreading, white, mostly shorter than hairs of sepal and petal apex margins; sepals linear to narrowly oblanceolate, 2-4 × 0.3-0.5 mm, membranous, with conspicuous midvein, outside subglabrous to sparsely hairy, inside sparsely hairy, hairs on both surfaces appressed or spreading, white, shorter and generally weaker than those on margins; sepal margin ciliate, hairs spreading, white, ca. as long as 1/2 sepal width; sepal apex acute, often apiculate. Petals 2-4.5 mm × 1-1.5 mm, narrowly oblanceolate-linear to narrowly spatulate, midvein and lateral veins conspicuous, indumentum on both surfaces and margin as for sepals, hairs at petal apex 0.5-0.7 mm, ca. 1/2 as long as petal width. Disk glands pubescent, hairs white, straight, long. Stamens 6-9; filaments 3-4 mm, sparsely hairy in lower half, hairs spreading, white, long. Free part of ovary densely hairy, hairs spreading, white, straight, long; styles usually 3, ca. 3 mm, hairy in lower 1/3, hairs as for ovary; placentas 3, each with 2-4 ovules. Capsule 5-6 mm, subglabrous. Fl. Feb-Nov, fr. Sep-Dec.

See also inadequately known "species D" (Liang 63511 (K) and Liang 63788 (K), from Hainan), below.

Broad-leaved forests in mountains; 400-1200 m. Fujian, Guangdong, Guangxi, Hainan, Hunan, Jiangxi, Taiwan [Vietnam].