Leaves are opposite, obovate-oblong, abruptly acute or rounded at the apex, cuneate or acute at the base, subirregularly serrated, deep green and lustrous above, paler and with tufts of hairs beneath.

Small and white flowers open in April to May.

Drupes ripening red to purplish black in August to September.

This foetid tree is rather scatteredly distributed in the warm temperate zone.

The tree is planted in gardens.

Distribution ; Honshu (Kanto to west), Shikoku, Kyushu