Shrub or small tree to c. 7 m high, often only 1-2 m, spreading or often forming dense thickets; bark rather smooth. Shoots not brittle, grey or greenish grey and remaining hairy, or reddish to dark purple and often becoming glabrous or glabrate, generally with pale brown markings and striations prominent below surface for c. 2 years. Buds reddish, glabrate or hairy. Petiole to c. 1 cm long on adult shoots, but often very short, hairy. Lamina 2-7 × 1.5-3.5 cm, often smaller at base of lateral shoots, generally obovate, sometimes elliptic, not bitter to taste, grey or glaucous below, generally ± densely clothed in soft grey hairs, sometimes rather sparsely clothed in harsher reddish brown hairs, soon glabrous and shining above except for midrib, glandular-serrulate to subentire; angle between midrib and veins > 45°; apex rounded to cuspidate. Stipules semi-annular, small, persisting on strong vegetative shoots. Catkins appearing before lvs, ? or ?, 1.5-3.5 cm long, broad-cylindric to cylindric-ovate, ± erect; rachis villous. Bracts 1.5-3 mm long, elliptic to oblong-obovate, black in upper 1/2, sericeous; apex obtuse to rounded. Gland 1, 0.5-0.8 mm long, ± rectangular to almost square. Stamens 2; filaments pilose towards base. ♀ fls with pedicels > bracts; ovary white-tomentose, stalked.