E-Flora BC: Electronic Atlas of the Flora of British Columbia

General:
Dioecious shrubs, 1-5 m tall, not colonial; branches erect, flexible at base; twigs yellow- to red-brown, smooth or moderately hairy.

Leaves:
Alternate, simple, lance- or egg-shaped to narrowly oblong, 5-15 cm long, 1-5.3 cm wide, lower surface glaucous, smooth, upper surface dull, smooth or sparsely long-hairy on midrib, margins toothed, bases rounded or heart-shaped, tips tapered; leaf stalks without glandular dots at top; stipules leaflike.

Flowers:
Unisexual, lacking sepals and petals, borne in catkins which flower as leaves emerge, the catkins stout, on leafy twigs; floral bracts dark, smooth or hairy, hairs wavy; stamens 2; ovaries 1, smooth; styles 0.3-1 mm long.

Fruits:
Capsules which split open to release the seeds, each of which is surrounded by a tuft of hairs; stalks 1.3-4.2 mm long.

Notes:
The twigs of this species are usually smooth, but plants with spreading-hairy twigs, the basis of the name S. rigida var. macrogemma, are common on Vancouver Island and are scattered elsewhere. Plants with hairy twigs are sometimes difficult to distinguish from S. barclayi.