Shrubs 2-3 m tall. Branchlets stout, glabrous, unarmed. Buds brown, ovoid, 5-7 mm, pubescent, apex acute. Petiole 6-8 cm, glabrous or puberulent, sometimes sparsely long stalked glandular near base; leaf blade suborbicular, 5-7(-9) × 6-10 cm, sparsely shortly stalked glandular on both surfaces, sometimes pubescent along veins abaxially when young, base deeply or shallowly cordate; lobes (3-)5, ovate-triangular, margin deeply or shallowly incised doubly serrate, apex acuminate; terminal lobe slightly longer than lateral ones. Racemes nodding, lax, 7-15 cm, 10-20-flowered; rachis and pedicels pubescent; bracts ligulate or lanceolate to ovate, (2-)5-7 mm, pubescent. Flowers bisexual, 5-6 mm in diam.; pedicel 1-2 mm. Calyx yellowish green tinged purple or red, glabrous; tube campanulate, 1.5-2.5 mm; lobes reflexed, elliptic to ligulate or oblong, 2-3 mm. Petals subspatulate to subflabellate, 1-2 mm. Stamens inserted level with petals and equaling or slightly longer than them; anthers ovoid to narrowly so, apex with nectary. Ovary subglobose, glabrous. Style equaling or slightly longer than stamens, subentire or 2-lobed. Fruit red, ovoid-globose, 0.8-1.2 cm in diam., glabrous. Fl. May-Jun, fr. Jul-Sep.

Forests and forest margins in mountain regions, foothill thickets; 2600-4200 m. W Sichuan, Xizang, NW Yunnan [Bhutan, NE India, Nepal].