Plants 1–7 m. Stems: branches gray-brown, red-brown, or yellow-brown, glaucous to strongly so (slightly to highly glossy), villous to glabrescent; branchlets gray-brown, red-brown, yellow-brown, or yellow-green, (not or weakly glaucous), pilose, densely villous, or tomentose. Leaves: stipules rudimentary or foliaceous on early ones, foliaceous on late ones, (0.6–8 mm), apex acute or obtuse; petiole shallowly to deeply grooved adaxially, 2.5–8 mm, glabrous or villous adaxially; largest medial blade (sometimes amphistomatous), narrowly to broadly elliptic, oblong to oblanceolate or obovate, 32–109 × 10–47 mm, 1.8–4.8 times as long as wide, base convex, cuneate, or subcordate, sometimes cordate, margins flat, entire, crenate, or serrulate, apex acute, convex, or acuminate, abaxial surface not glaucous, glabrous or pilose, hairs (white, sometimes also ferruginous), wavy, adaxial slightly glossy, glabrous, pilose, pubescent, moderately densely short-silky, or velvety, midrib remaining pilose or short-hairy, (hairs sometimes also ferruginous, straight and geniculate); proximal blade margins serrulate or entire; juvenile blade sometimes reddish or yellowish green, abaxially glabrous, or midrib sparsely pubescent, or densely villous or short-silky, hairs white, sometimes also ferruginous. Catkins flowering as leaves emerge; staminate stout, 16.5–35.5 × 7–15 mm, flowering branchlet 0.5–12 mm; pistillate moderately or densely flowered, slender or stout, 10.5–68 × 5–20 mm, flowering branchlet 0.5–10 mm; floral bract brown, black, tawny, or bicolor, 0.6–1.1 mm, apex retuse, abaxially hairy, hairs long-wavy or curly. Staminate flowers: adaxial nectary oblong square, 0.2–0.4–0.6 mm; filaments distinct, glabrous; anthers purple turning yellow, 0.4–0.7 mm. Pistillate flowers: adaxial nectary square or oblong, 0.2–0.4 mm, shorter than stipe; stipe 0.8–1.4 mm; ovary pyriform, glabrous, beak slightly bulged below styles; ovules 11–18 per ovary; styles 0.4–1.6 mm; stigmas flat, abaxially non-papillate with rounded tip, or 2 plump lobes, 0.16–0.24–0.32 mm. Capsules 4.4–6.4 mm. 2n = 76.
