A deciduous unarmed shrub 3 to 5 ft high; young shoots finely downy. Leaves three- to five-lobed, the largest 2 in. long, 21⁄2 to 3 in. wide, the lobes coarsely toothed, usually more or less downy; stalk downy and with feathered bristles near the base. Flowers unisexual, the sexes on separate plants. Males clustered four to nine together in a stalkless umbel, each flower is on its own stalk without uniting on a common one, yellow, fragrant; females usually in pairs, sometimes three or four. Fruits erect on a stalk 1⁄5 in. long, round, 1⁄3 to 1⁄2 in. in diameter, glabrous, bright scarlet.
Native of China, Japan, and Korea, and distinct from all other species in cultivation in having the flowers clustered in fascicles.
var. chinense Maxim. R. billiardii Carr. – A taller shrub, partially evergreen, more downy than the type. The fruits of both are ornamental, and remain long on the branches.