Polygonatum delavayi Hua; P. gentilianum H. Léveillé.

Rhizome terete, 3--5 mm thick, slender. Stem erect, 8--30 cm, slender, glabrous. Leaves 4--15, alternate, sometimes also opposite in proximal part of stem, mostly opposite in distal part of stem, often in whorls of 3 in apical part of stem; petiole very short; leaf blade elliptic to oblong, 2--6 × 1--2 cm, apex subobtuse or acute. Inflorescences 2(or 3)-flowered; peduncle 2--6 mm; bracts very small, caducous. Flowers pendulous; pedicel (2--)5--6 mm. Perianth white or pale purple, cylindric, 6--8 mm; tube smooth or papillose-scabrous inside; lobes 1.5--2.5 mm. Filaments very short, papillose; anthers ca. 1.5 mm. Ovary ca. 1.5 mm. Style ca. 1.5 mm. Berries purple-red to brown, 5--7 mm in diam., 1- or 2-seeded. Fl. May--Jun, fr. Aug--Oct. 2 n = 28*, 56*.

* Forests, thickets, grassy slopes; 2500--3300 m. W Sichuan, NW Yunnan.