Shrubs deciduous, 0.45-0.8 m tall. Branches glabrous. Leaves alternate; petiole very short to absent; leaf blade oblanceolate, 3-6(-8) × 0.7-1.2(-1.5) cm, membranous or papery, both surfaces glabrous, base narrowly cuneate, apex obtuse, often apiculate; veins 8-10 pairs. Inflorescences terminal, capitate, 3-8-flowered; peduncle very short to absent; bracts absent. Flowers slightly fragrant; pedicel shorter than 1 mm. Calyx golden-yellow; tube cylindric, 6-8(-10) × 2-3 mm, exterior glabrous; lobes 4, ovate-triangular, 3-4(-5) mm, glabrous, apex acute or acuminate. Stamens 8, lower whorl inserted above middle of calyx tube, upper whorl in throat; filaments ca. 0.5 mm; anthers oblong, ca. 1.2 mm. Disk shallow, entire. Ovary ellipsoid, glabrous; style absent; stigma capitate. Drupe red, ovoid or subglobose, 5-6(-8) mm. Fl. Jun, fr. Jul-Aug.

This species is widely cultivated and sometimes used as a rootstock for grafting.

● Forest margins, open slopes with bushes; 1600-3100 m. Gansu, Heilongjiang, Liaoning, Qinghai, Shanxi, Sichuan, Xinjiang.