Shrubs or trees monoecious; branchlets prominently 6-angled or not. Leaves in whorls of 3, 3-5(-7) × 1-1.5 mm, glaucous, all needlelike, concave and with a faint green midvein adaxially, keeled and without longitudinal grooves abaxially, base decurrent, apex acuminate. Pollen cones axillary, ovoid or globose, 3-4 mm; microsporophylls 6-9, whorled, each with 2-3 pollen sacs. Seed cones axillary, black when ripe, lustrous, ovoid or subglobose, 7-9 mm, 1-seeded. Seeds ovoid or subglobose, 5-7 mm, with prominent resin pits, base rounded, apex obtuse.

* Forests or thickets on mountain slopes; 2600-4900 m. S Gansu, NW Hubei, S Qinghai, S Shaanxi, Sichuan, Xizang, Yunnan.