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Inflorescences up to 9 cm long, axillary, unisexual or bisexual, if the latter then consisting of a male spike with 1–2 female flowers at the base, otherwise spikes all male and many-flowered or all female and 1–few-flowered; male bracts resembling the stipules; female bracts accrescent to up to 5–6 × 8 mm, suborbicular, almost cupular, irregularly 13–19-fid almost to halfway, the segments linear to lanceolate, pubescent, 1-flowered.
Leaf blades 3–9 × 0.3–1.5 cm, linear to linear-lanceolate or linear-oblanceolate, acute or subacute at the apex, with margins toothed in the upper half, otherwise ± entire, attenuate at the base, firmly chartaceous, sparingly pubescent above and beneath, bright green; lateral nerves in 5–6 pairs, ascending, fairly prominent beneath.
Female flowers sessile; sepals 3–4, 1 mm long, ovate to ovate-lanceolate, acute, ciliate; ovary 1 mm in diameter, 3-lobed, sericeous-pubescent, green; styles up to c. 1 cm long, free, pectinately laciniate, crimson.
Male flowers very shortly pedicellate to subsessile; buds 4-lobed to subglobose, sparingly puberulous, creamy-yellow, sometimes pinkish-or reddish-tinged; anthers red.
An erect caespitose perennial herb up to 50 cm high, arising from a stout woody rootstock; stems several, simple or sparingly branched, pubescent.
Seeds 2–2.5 × 1.7–2 mm, ovoid-subglobose, smooth, grey, with a flattened elliptical caruncle.
Fruits 3–4 × 4–5 mm, 3-lobed, sericeous-pubescent.
Petioles 1 mm long, or leaves subsessile.
Stipules 2–3 mm long, linear-subulate.
