Shrubs, evergreen, to 1.5 m tall. Branches brownish gray, sulcate, sparsely black verruculose; spines 3-fid, weak, pale yellow, terete, 3-9 mm. Leaves subsessile; leaf blade abaxially pale green, adaxially shiny, deep green, elliptic or obovate-elliptic, 1-3 × 0.6-1 cm, thinly leathery, abaxially not pruinose, midvein markedly raised, adaxially with impressed midvein, both surfaces with inconspicuous secondary and reticulate veins, base cuneate, margin occasionally entire, otherwise 1-4-spinose-serrate on each side, apex acute. Flowers solitary. Pedicels straight, 2-4 cm, slender, glabrous; bractlets ovate, ca. 1.8 mm. Sepals in 2 whorls; outer sepals ovate, ca. 3 × 2.5 mm; inner sepals obovate-orbicular, ca. 5 × 4.5 mm. Petals obovate, ca. 4.5 × 3.2 mm, base clawed and with approximate glands, apex slightly emarginate. Stamens ca. 3.2 mm; anther connective truncate. Ovules 4 or 5, sessile. Berry ellipsoid, (6.5-)7-8 × 4-5 mm, slightly pruinose, style not persistent. Fl. May-Jun, fr. Jul-Sep.