Shrubs, deciduous, low, forming clones 0.3-1.5 × 10 m, rhizomatous. Bark light gray, scaly-papery. Twigs brown or grayish, 1-2.5 mm diam., glabrous or densely short grayish or yellowish tomentulose, glabrate in age. Buds dark red-brown, subglobose, ca. 2 mm, sparsely pubescent. Leaves: petiole to 7 mm. Leaf blade green, often turning brownish with age, polymorphic, oblong or elliptic or sometimes lanceolate to oblanceolate or ovate to obovate, (30-)50-100 × (10-)20-50 mm, rather thick and hard, base rounded to cuneate, margins flat to revolute, at least some undulate, 2-3 rounded teeth on each side, secondary veins 5-8 on each side, much branched, apex broadly rounded, rarely acute; surfaces abaxially densely grayish or yellowish tomentulose or stellate-pubescent, sometimes only sparsely pubescent, secondary veins quite prominent, adaxially lustrous, very sparsely stellate-pubescent or glabrate, secondary veins very slightly if at all raised. Acorns solitary or paired, subsessile or on peduncle to 10(-18) mm; cup from deeply cup-shaped to goblet-shaped, 10-12 mm deep × 15-25 mm wide, enclosing 1/3-1/2 nut, base rounded or slightly constricted, margin very thin and smooth, scales reddish brown, triangular-ovate to long-acute, proximally moderately to markedly tuberculate, pubescent, often canescent, tips loosely appressed; nut brown, ovoid, 12-25 × 14-18 mm. Cotyledons distinct.
