Shrubs, deciduous to 3 m tall, branched. Branches with solid pith. Winter buds with several pairs of acute scales. Leaves, petioles, and bracts (sometimes bracteoles and calyx lobes) often sparsely red-brown glandular ciliolate. Petioles 1-3 mm; leaf blade obovate to elliptic or ovate, 0.5-4.5 cm × 2-13 mm, abaxially glaucous, glabrous to pubescent, base cuneate, apex acute or obtuse to rounded and sometimes mucronate. Inflorescences axillary, paired flowers, and on lateral short branches; peduncle 1-30 mm; bracts leaflike, often exceeding calyx lobes in length; bracteoles fused and cupular, ca. 1/2 as long as or equaling ovaries, apex truncate or shallowly dentate. Neighboring 2 ovaries fused above middle or throughout. Calyx shallowly cupular; lobes ovate-triangular, often unequal. Corolla white to pink, often tinged purple-red, tubular-campanulate, 6-10 mm, outside glabrous to pubescent, 4-or 5-lobed; tube inside densely hairy at throat and densely glandular below; glandular hairs in 5 regular lines; tube with 1-5 ± conspicuous pouches halfway up; lobes orbicular-ovate, 1/4-1/3 as long as tube. Stamens and style included; anthers ca. 1 mm; filaments inserted slightly below throat. Ovary usually 2-locular; style not exceeding anthers; stigmas green, globose, mucilaginous. Berry red, suborbicular, 4-6 mm in diam.; calyx persistent; seeds brownish, ovoid to oblong, compressed, 2-3 mm. Fl. May-Jul, fr. Aug-Sep.
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A straggling shrub. It grows 2 m tall. It has smooth grey bark. The bark flakes off in large papery flakes. The leaves have short stalks. They are oblong to sword shaped. The flowers are pink. They occur in pairs. They are in the axils of leaves. They have 2 large boat shaped bracts. These are 1.5-2 cm long. The flower buds and fruit are enclosed in the bracts, The fruit is round and bright red.
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