Carpinus chuniana Hu

Trees to 10 m tall; bark black-gray. Branchlets purplish brown, densely yellow villous when young, glabrescent. Petiole robust, 6-12 mm, densely yellow villous; leaf blade elliptic, oblong, or obovate-oblong, 7-11 × 5-5.5 cm, abaxially villous along veins, bearded in axils of lateral veins, adaxially densely villous along midvein when young, densely glandular punctate, base cordate, sometimes unequal, margin regularly or irregularly doubly minutely serrate, apex acute or acuminate; lateral veins 14-18 on each side of midvein. Female inflorescence 5-11 × ca. 2.5 cm; peduncle 1.5-2.5 cm, densely hirsute and pubescent; bracts broadly semiovate, 2-2.5 × ca. 1.3 cm, both surfaces densely villous along veins, outer margin irregularly dentate, without basal lobe, inner margin entire or remotely minutely serrate, with inflexed basal auricle, apex acute; veins 4 or 5, reticulate veins prominent. Nutlet broadly ovoid, ca. 4 × 3 mm, densely pubescent, sparsely brown resinous glandular, apex villous. Fl. May-Jun, fr. Jul-Aug.

* Subtropical forests on limestone mountain slopes or in valleys. N Guangdong (Lechang Xian), Guizhou (Fanjing Shan), SE Hubei