A deciduous shrub of bushy habit up to 6 or 8 ft high, closely allied to C. integerrimus and differing chiefly in the rounder, larger leaves, the biggest of which are 21⁄2 in. long and 11⁄2 in. wide, slightly hairy above, very woolly beneath; stalk 1⁄8 to 1⁄4 in. long. Flowers in short, nodding clusters, from three to six in each cluster, white; calyx very woolly; fruit red; nutlets three to five.
Native of the mountainous parts of Central and S. Europe; introduced in 1759. It can scarcely be regarded as more than a variety of C. integerrimus, although a rather superior one. The leaves are larger and more uniformly rounded at both ends, still not invariably so. The best distinction is afforded by the extremely woolly calyx and flower-stalk. (See also C. zabelii.)