Herbs perennial, densely cespitose, 11.5-19 cm tall. Stem brown crisped glandular villous (hairs denser near nodes) and shortly glandular hairy. Basal leaves numerous, caducous; petiole 1.5-4 mm, brown crisped glandular villous at margin; leaf blade oblong to linear or elliptic, 2.5-3 × 0.8-1 mm, brown pubescent, sometimes glandular, apex acute. Cauline leaves with petiole 1.2-2 mm, abaxially glandular hairy, margin brown crisped glandular villous at base; leaf blade oblanceolate to narrowly oblong or elliptic to oblong, 0.8-1.3 cm × 1.9-4 mm, glandular pubescent on both surfaces and at margin, base gradually tapered, apex acute or mucronate. Cyme 2-4(-8)-flowered or flower solitary; pedicels slender, 0.6-2.9 cm, glandular hairy. Sepals erect to spreading, broadly ovate or subelliptic to narrowly ovate, 1.9-2.6 × 1.2-1.5 mm, abaxially glandular hairy, veins 3, not confluent at apex, margin usually glabrous, occasionally glandular hairy, apex obtuse, sometimes erose. Petals yellow or orange, narrowly ovate to oblong, 4-5.3 × 1.7-2 mm, 2-callose near base, sometimes obscurely so, 3- or 4(or 5)-veined, base rounded or obtuse, or cordate and contracted into a claw 0.2-0.4 mm, apex obtuse or acute. Stamens 1.7-4.8 mm. Ovary subsuperior, ovoid, 2-2.5 mm; styles 1.5-5 mm. Fl. and fr. Jun-Sep.

Saxifraga hypericoides var. glabrescens T. C. Ku (Bull. Bot. Res., Harbin 9(4): 3. 1989) was described from SW Sichuan (Yanyuan Xian) as a glabrous-leaved variant. Two of the present authors (Gornall and Ohba) do not believe it belongs in this species because S. hypericoides, despite its great variability, always has pubescent leaves; var. glabrescens requires further study to ascertain its relationships and status.

* Forests, forest margins, alpine scrub meadows, alpine meadows, rock crevices; 2700-5300 m. Sichuan, Yunnan.