 The bark is dark grey, remaining smooth even on old trees.The buds are pale pinkish-brown to grey-brown, with a dense covering of short grey hairs.The leaves are in opposite pairs, pinnate, long, with 5 to 9 leaflets; the leaflets are broad ovoid, long and broad, with a finely serrated and wavy margin, and short but distinct petiolules long; the autumn colour is variable, yellow to purplish.