Fontanesia phillyreoides subsp. fortunei (Carriere) Yaltirik is a deciduous shrub or small tree of the Oleaceae family, genus Fontanesia fortunei, growing up to 8 meters tall. The bark is gray-brown, with gray-white, cylindrical branches, and light yellow or light green, quadrangular or angular, glabrous twigs. The leaves are papery, lanceolate, ovate-lanceolate, or narrowly ovate, measuring 3-12 cm in length and 0.8-2.6 cm in width. Panicles are terminal or axillary; the terminal inflorescence is 2-6 cm long, while the axillary inflorescence is shorter, ranging from 1.5-4 cm in length. The fruit is yellow-brown, obovate to obovate-elliptical, and flat; seeds are about 3 mm long and triangular. The flowering period is from April to June, and the fruiting period is from June to October.
This plant is distributed in Hebei, Shaanxi, Shandong, Jiangsu, Anhui, Zhejiang, Henan, and eastern Hubei, China. It thrives in ditches, streams, or forests below 800 meters above sea level.
The young leaves of snow willow can be used to make tea; the branches can be woven into baskets; the bark can be used to make artificial cotton. It is also cultivated as a hedge. The roots can treat athlete's foot. Snow willow has strong resistance and absorption capabilities for toxic gases such as sulfur dioxide, chlorine, and hydrogen chloride. Additionally, it has certain dust, smoke retention, and noise reduction functions. It can be used for the greening of industrial and mining enterprises or around them to purify the air and reduce air pollution.