The alternate leaves of Hermannia salviifolia var. salviifolia are short-stalked with a pair of tiny, narrow stipules at the base of each petiole or stalk. The leaf-shape is broadly ovate, i.e. oval with its widest part nearer the tip than the base.
In picture the blades are grey-green to yellow-green in colour. The leaf surfaces are hairy, the margins very finely toothed. The veins are sunken on the upper leaf surfaces.
The plant’s specific name, salviifolia, is derived from the Latin words salve meaning in good health or well and folia meaning leaves, referring to the likeness of the leaves to those of some plants in the Salvia genus (Bean and Johns, 2005; Bond and Goldblatt, 1984; iNaturalist).