Leaves are simple and alternate on twigs but paired on spur shoots.
They are 1.5 to 3.5 inches long, doubly serrate and have wedge-shaped bases. The petioles are downy and the leaf surfaces lustrous green above and finely hairy beneath. Fall color is a dull yellow, and leaves drop early. Male flowers are produced in slender, shiny, dark brown, pendulous catkins in mid to late summer, opening the following spring. Female flowers are produced in short, bright-green, erect catkins.