A continental stratigraphy column covering the Pliocene and Early Pleistocene in SE Shanxi, China has been studied using pollen analysis, ten pollen zones are defined with their correlation to magnetic polarity and10Be datings. The vegetational development and climatic changes during the period from 5.1 Ma to 1.8 Ma BP are discussed.Piceabecame a dominant component of the pollen assemblage in the Early Pliocene. Subtropical components such asCaryaandLiquidambaroccur in the Pliocene pollen spectra. The palaeoclimate of the Pliocene was moist and relatively warm, though a trend towards a colder and drier climate is reflected. Around 2.3 Ma BP the prevailing forest turned into a type of steppe and the subtropical components basically migrated out of the area. The Pliocene-Pleistocene boundary is also discussed using palynostratigraphy. It seems reasonable to place the Pliocene-Pleistocene boundary close to the Gauss-matuyama magnetic boundary.