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Lemma 5-7 mm. long, slightly keeled, purple or green, darkly mottled, glabrous or punctulate in the lower part, with rows of coarse scabridules towards the apex, rarely glabrous all over; callus c. 1·5 mm. long, rounded to subacute, densely short-barbate; beak or column absent; awns 10-14 mm. long, subequal, erect or somewhat spreading, very scabrous; articulation absent.
Glumes subequal to unequal, 1-nerved, scaberulous or hirtellous, with a scabrid keel; the inferior 4-6·5 mm. long, lanceolate, more or less gradually tapering into an awn up to 3 mm. long or with a slightly 2-fid apex, with an awn up to 2·5 mm. long from the sinus; the superior up to 5·5-6·5 mm. long, deeply 2-fid, with an awn up to 1·5 mm. long from the sinus.
Panicle 15-30 cm. long, terminal and lateral, usually lax; axis more or less terete, glabrous in the lower part, angular, scabrous in the upper part; branches often filiform and sometimes flexuous, naked in the lower part, compressed, angular, scabrous, with a dark glandular patch in the axils.
A distinct species which is characterized by having a large panicle, conspicuously awned, scabrid or hirtellous, subequal or unequal glumes (the superior longer than the inferior), and by a scabrid, rarely nearly glabrous lemma which is subequal or shorter than the glumes.
Leaf-laminae 30 x 0·1-0·35 cm., usually flat, fairly rigid with 1-2 pallid prominent marginal nerves, scaberulous and hirtellous above, glabrous, smooth, or minutely scaberulous beneath.
Ligule a short-ciliolate rim; auricles densely and shortly ciliolate, often with a few long hairs, or nearly glabrous; collar glabrous.
Leaf-sheaths laxly embracing the culm, keeled, glabrous or minutely scaberulous, the lower often with some scattered long hairs.
Culms erect or ascending, slender, usually glabrous, smooth, much branched, 3-4-noded; nodes glabrous, smooth.
Annual, up to 85 cm. high, caespitose.
Spikelets linear, purplish.
