Shrubs, deciduous, to 4 m tall. Bark light brown. Branchlets of current year gray-brown, quadrangular, yellowish stellate-pubescent, glabrescent, with small lenticels; branchlets of previous year gray-yellowish, terete, glabrous, with sparse, small, rounded lenticels. Winter buds oblong-ovoid, with 2 pairs of separate scales; scales ovate-lanceolate, glabrescent. Leaves always opposite, not clustered at apices of branchlets; stipules absent; petiole green, robust, 5-10 cm, stellate-pubescent; leaf blade green when young, black-brown when dry, oblong or oblong-lanceolate to linear-lanceolate, 5-11 × 1.5-2.8 cm, thickly papery, abaxially with dispersed small brown dots, both surfaces glabrous, midvein raised abaxially, lateral veins 4-6-jugate, pinnate, arched, rarely branched, anastomosing near margin, raised abaxially, impressed adaxially, veinlets transverse, slightly raised abaxially, impressed adaxially, not lobed, base cuneate, without glands, margin irregularly repand, not dentate, apex abruptly narrowed and long caudate. Flowers appearing after leaves; inflorescence a compound umbel-like cyme, terminal or at apices of branchlets with 1 pair of leaves, 2.5-5 cm in diam.; rays whorled; first node of inflorescence with 5 rays; rays of different orders slender, dense, stellate-pubescent and with red-brown glandular dots, without large sterile radiant flowers; peduncles 2-2.5 cm; bracts and bracteoles caducous, green, linear-lanceolate, membranous, glabrous. Flowers on rays of 2nd and 3rd orders, not fragrant, long pedicellate or sessile. Calyx green; tube tubular, ca. 1 mm, with few red-brown glandular dots; lobes ovate, ca. 0.8 mm, glabrous, apex acute. Corolla white, rotate, ca. 4 mm in diam., glabrous; tube ca. 1 mm; lobes spreading, ovate, ca. 1.2 mm, exceeding tube, apex rounded, margin entire. Stamens subequaling corolla, inserted at base of corolla; filaments ca. 3 mm; anthers yellow-whitish, broadly elliptic, ca. 1 mm. Styles not exceeding calyx lobes; stigmas capitate. Fruit maturing red, ovoid, ca. 7.5 mm, base rounded, apex rounded, glabrous; pyrenes compressed, ovoid, ca. 6 × 4 mm, raised on dorsal side, slightly impressed on ventral side, apex rounded. Fl. Jun, fr. Aug-Sep.
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