Erect, unarmed shrub, 1-3 m tall. Leaves alternate and desciduous, regularly or irregularly 5-lobed, 2-6 cm across. Flowers white to (most common) red-rose color in erect to drooping clusters of 10-20. Fruit is blue-black, edible though not particularly palatable.

Found in open, dry woods, rocky slopes and disturbed sites at low to middle elevations.