Shrubs, deciduous, to 3 m tall. Bark light brown. Branchlets of current year pale brown, glabrous; branchlets of previous year gray or gray-brownish, terete, glabrous, with dispersed, small, rounded lenticels. Winter buds ovoid, with 2 pairs of separate scales; scales glabrous. Leaves always opposite, not clustered at apices of branchlets; stipules 2, subulate, small, persistent, or absent; petiole green, slender, 1-2.5(-4.5) cm, glabrous; leaf blade green when young, broadly ovate to oblong-ovate or obovate, 3-8 × 3-7 cm, papery, abaxially adpressed long hairy, densely stellate-pubescent in vein axils, adaxially sparsely stellate-pubescent throughout or only on veins, midvein raised abaxially, 3-5-palmatinerved, veins straight or slightly arched, branched, ending in teeth, raised abaxially, impressed adaxially, veinlets transverse, inconspicuous on both surfaces, 3-5-lobed, base truncate to subcordate or broadly cuneate, with 0 or 1 circular gland on both sides of midvein near base, middle lobe largest, margin irregularly dentate, apex acuminate or acute. Flowers appearing after leaves; inflorescence a compound umbel-like cyme, terminal, 2-4 cm in diam.; rays whorled; first node of inflorescence with 5-7 rays, dense, pubescent, without large sterile radiant flowers; peduncle 2.5-3.5 cm; bracts and bracteoles deciduous, leaflike, green, linear-lanceolate, hairy. Flowers on rays of 2nd and 3rd orders, not fragrant, shortly pedicellate or sessile. Calyx purple-red; tube obconical, ca. 1 mm, glabrous; lobes ovate-triangular, ca. 0.5 mm, glabrous, apex obtuse. Corolla reddish, rotate, ca. 6 mm in diam., glabrous; tube ca. 2 mm; lobes spreading, suborbicular, ca. 2.5 × 2.5 mm, slightly exceeding tube, apex rounded, margin slightly erose. Stamens slightly longer than corolla, inserted at base of corolla; filaments ca. 2.5 mm; anthers red-brown, globose, ca. 0.8 mm. Styles slightly exceeding calyx lobes; stigmas 2-lobed. Fruit maturing red, ellipsoid or subglobose, 8-10(-12) × 7-8 mm, base rounded, apex rounded, glabrous; pyrenes compressed, ellipsoid, 7-9 × ca. 5 mm, with 2 shallow dorsal grooves and 3 shallow ventral grooves, apex rounded. Fl. Jun-Jul, fr. Sep-Oct.

● Abies forests, mixed forests; 2400-3600 m. Gansu, Shaanxi, Sichuan, Xizang, Yunnan.