Herbs, dioecious, perennial, caespitose, the base pubescent in the axils of glabrous scarious cataphylls; cluster roots present. Cataphylls scarious, similar to sheaths but with longer laminae. Culms simple, erect, striate, strongly compressed, glabrous, edges of culms minutely scabrid. Sheaths persistent, appressed, herbaceous or becoming scarious. Male and female inflorescences similar with erect spikelets on slender peduncles, solitary or a few together at several upper nodes. Male spikelets with many flowers and several sterile lower glumes. Female spikelets with several flowers and several sterile lower glumes; glumes aristate. Flowers with 4 tepals, outer tepals keeled and sparsely pubescent. Male flowers with 2 stamens, anthers exserted, pistillode minute. Female flowers with a 2-locular ovary and 2 styles; styles not united, staminodes minute. Fruit a dorsiventrally compressed loculicidal capsule. Seeds with an irregular pattern of subangular or slightly lobed, flat or slightly convex, isodiametric cells. Culm anatomy: chlorenchyma of 1 or 2 layers of short peg-cells, interrupted opposite some outer vascular bundles by pillar cells; girders and protective cells absent; central cavity present.
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