Herbs perennial, often covered with long soft hairs. Rhizome erect. Leaves basal, rosulate; petiole long; leaf blade palmately or odd pinnately divided; veins palmate. Scape with 3 bracts forming a bell-shaped involucre; involucral bracts basally connate and apically ± deeply divided into numerous lobes. Flower solitary, bisexual. Sepals 5 or 6. Petals absent. Stamens numerous, outermost whorl staminodial except in Pulsatilla kostyczewii; anthers yellow or purple, oblong, narrowly ellipsoid, filiform, or linear, with one longitudinal vein. Pistils numerous; ovule 1 per ovary. Styles long linear, pilose, strongly elongated and plumose when mature. Infructescence globose. Achenes small, spindle-shaped, pilose, with a long plumose beak formed by persistent style.

Although Pulsatilla can easily be distinguished from Anemone by the former having a long, plumose beak on the achenes formed by the persistent style, phylogenetic studies have shown that they are probably congeneric.

About 33 species: Asia, Europe, North America; 11 species (one endemic) in China.

(Authors: Wang Wencai; Bruce Bartholomew)