This association is dominated by the low-growing clonal shrub Prunus fruticosa, often accompanied by other shrubs such as P. spinosa, Rosa canina, R. gallica, R. marginata and R. spinosissima. The stands are usually 50–150 cm tall. They occur in warm and dry areas, mainly over base-rich bedrock, where they may grow at the edges of tall scrub, as secondary successional communities after abandonment of management on dry grasslands or as primary vegetation on cliff ledges.