Copperleaf

This modest-sized shrub grows up to 4 feet (1.2 meters) tall and lives for around 54 years. It is susceptible to disease and destructive insect infestation.

It has several flexible, straight stems covered in paper-thin, waxy, copper-coloured bark, and the wood inside is dark brown.

The branches are very long and slender with thousands of twigs that and are covered with sparse amounts of tiny, perforated, leaves with smooth edges. The leaves themselves are grey at the bottom and crimson with cyan zig-zags at the top, tough and sticky.

In mid-summer it produces dozens of medium-sized, dark brown flowers with broad, flat petals with a bell-shaped floral cup. They are sturdy and have a faint scent that smells like old books.