Trees, to 25 m tall, d.b.h. to 80 cm, deciduous. Bark dark gray to blackish, longitudinally fissured, scabrous. Branchlets densely pubescent in first or second year, sometimes with opposite flat corky wings, with scattered yellowish brown lenticels. Winter buds ± globose to ovoid; bud scale margin ciliate. Petiole 4-8 mm, pubescent; leaf blade oblong-obovate, elliptic-obovate, or rhombic-elliptic, 3-11 × 1.8-5.5 cm, abaxially scabridulous and densely pubescent when young but only on veins with age, adaxially scabrous and densely hirsute, base oblique, margin simply or doubly serrate, apex obtuse-acuminate to acute; secondary veins 8-10 on each side of midvein. Flowers from floral buds, rarely from mixed buds. Perianth campanulate, 4- or 5-lobed, pubescent, margin ciliate. Samaras orbicular to obovate-orbicular, 1.8-2.8 × 1.7-2.7 cm, pubescent, base broadly rounded to rounded; stalk 1-2 mm, densely pubescent; perianth persistent. Seed at center of samara. Fl. and fr. Mar-Apr.

This species is cultivated in Jiangsu (Nanjing).

* River banks, limestone mountains. Anhui (Langya Shan).