Shrubs or trees, 1.5-7 m. Stems: branches yellow, yellow-gray, or yellow-brown, not glaucous, glabrous (tomentose at nodes) or pubescent; branchlets yellow-brown or red-brown, (sometimes weakly glaucous with sparkling wax crystals), usually glabrous, sometimes pilose, pubescent, or moderately densely villous. Leaves: stipules rudimentary or foliaceous on early ones, foliaceous on late ones, apex acute or rounded; petiole convex to flat, or shallowly grooved adaxially, 3-27 mm, puberulent, pubescent, tomentose, velvety, or glabrous adaxially; largest medial blade (sometimes hemiamphistomatous), narrowly oblong, narrowly elliptic, or lanceolate, 28-116 × 10-30 mm, 2.6-3.5-7 times as long as wide, base subcordate, convex, or rounded, margins flat or slightly revolute, serrate, shallowly serrulate or crenulate, apex acuminate to acute, abaxial surface glabrous, pilose, or pubescent, midribs hairy, adaxial dull or slightly glossy, glabrous, pilose, sparsely long-silky, or tomentose, midribs hairy; proximal blade margins entire or shallowly serrulate; juvenile blade reddish or yellowish green, glabrous, pilose, or villous abaxially, hairs white. Catkins: staminate flowering before or just before leaves emerge, pistillate as leaves emerge; staminate slender, stout, or subglobose, 15-44 × 8-14 mm, flowering branchlet 0.5-4 mm; pistillate loosely or moderately densely flowered, slender or stout, 16-74(-115 in fruit) × 7-15 mm, flowering branchlet 0.5-9 mm; floral bract dark brown or tawny, 0.8-1.6 mm, apex rounded or convex, abaxially hairy throughout or proximally, hairs straight or wavy. Staminate flowers: adaxial nectary narrowly oblong, oblong, or flask-shaped, 0.8-1 mm; filaments distinct or connate less than 1/2 their lengths, glabrous; anthers yellow or purple turning yellow, (ellipsoid), 0.5-0.7 mm. Pistillate flowers: adaxial nectary 0.6-0.8 mm, shorter than stipe; stipe 0.7-2.4(-2.75) mm; ovary pyriform or obclavate, glabrous, beak sometimes slightly bulged below styles; ovules 12-18 per ovary; styles 0.2-0.6 mm; stigmas flat, abaxially non-papillate with rounded tip, or 2 plump lobes, 0.12-0.22-0.32 mm. Capsules 5-6 mm.
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