Leaf: Alternate, evergreen, simple, obovate, 2 to 4 inches long, usually toothed near tip, distinctly convex, sunken veins above, generally a heart-shaped base, shiny green above, fuzzy yellow-green with distinct raised veins below.

Flower: Monoecious; males in long drooping catkins, yellow-green; females very small spikes in leaf axils, appearing with the leaves.

Fruit: Oblong acorn, 1/2 to 1 inch long, warty bowl-shaped cap covers 1/3 of nut, borne on a very long stalk (1 to 3 inches), ripens in 1 season in early fall.

Twig: Moderate, light brown, fuzzy; reddish brown, clustered globose terminal buds.

Bark: Gray, initially thin and with lenticels, becomes fissured with scaly ridges.

Form: An evergreen, shrubby, small tree with a short trunk and a spreading, round crown, may reach up to 30 feet but often only a shrub.