Flora of North America species comparison

brownish gray, broken into narrow vertical scales or rather ragged strips.

thin, close or becoming furrowed or broken into plates;

lenticels not conspicuous.;

bark and wood tanniferous.

sparsely to moderately pubescent, often with stipitate glands.

blade ovate or broadly ovate-elliptic to broadly elliptic or nearly orbiculate, 2.5–6.5 × 1.5–5 cm, base narrowly rounded to cordate or cuneate, margins sharply and unevenly doubly serrate, apex acute;

surfaces abaxially pubescent, especially on veins.

2-ranked.

staminate catkins 2–3 cm; pistillate catkins 0.6–1 cm.

perianth absent.

2 per bract;

perianth adnate to ovary, often visible as membranaceous fringe at summit;

ovules with 2 integuments.

2.5–4 × 1.8–2.5 cm;

bracts 1–1.8 × 0.5–1 cm.

usually longer than 4 cm, consisting of relatively uncrowded clusters with large, nearly foliaceous bracts;

bracts deciduous with fruits.

tiny to moderately large nuts, not winged;

pericarp thick and bony.

and branches terete.

twigs and buds usually without prominent, large, resinous glands;

pith circular to remotely triangular in cross section.