Tufted to open extravaginally branched graceful, slender, upland grass of wet sites, with long-auricled fine leaves and smooth culms bearing short inflorescences of a few golden-violet spikelets, the lowest branch(es) usually widely divergent from the finely and minutely prickle-toothed rachis. Prophyll short (2-3 cm), keels glabrous. Branching extravaginal. Leaf-sheath 3-10 cm, striate, glabrous, much wider than leaf-blade, becoming red and fibrous; apical auricles (0.5)-0.7-1.7-(2) mm, lacerate, shortly ciliate. Ligule as for auricles. Leaf-blade 4-10-(20) cm × 0.3-0.4 mm diam., triangular or hexagonal, ridged, abaxially with long retrorse hairs below becoming glabrous, adaxially and on margins abundant short hairs; T.S.: 3-5 vascular bundles, 5-7 sclerenchyma strands. Culm (6)-10-30-(45) cm, slender, often greatly exceeding leaves, nodes hidden sometimes geniculate, internodes usually only one visible, glabrous. Panicle (1.5)-2-3.5-(6) cm, with 3-6-(9) nodes, (2)-3-6-(10) spikelets; basal branch pulvinate and widely divergent or erect ascending, (1)-1.5-2.5-(4) cm, solitary occasionally binate, with 1-2-(3) spikelets, not naked below; uppermost 3-6 spikelets solitary, imbricate, on short pedicels; rachis, branches and/or pedicels finely and minutely prickle-toothed on margins. Spikelets 6-9-(11) mm × 2-3 mm wide, golden-violet, of 3-5-(6) florets. Glumes unequal, keeled, glabrous, centrally golden-violet, smooth except for occasional prickles on keel, margins membranous and ciliate; lower 2.5-3.5 mm, 1-nerved, long triangular acute, upper 3-5 mm, 3-nerved, laterals often weakly developed, oblong, entire sometimes emarginate or slightly acute. Lemma 4-5-(6) mm, shortly (0.1 mm or less) lobed, upper margin broadly membranous, prickle-teeth throughout or sparse except on nerves at broad apex; narrowing abruptly to awn 0.5-1.5-(2) mm. Palea (3.5)-4-5.5 mm, ≤ lemma, acute, very shortly (0.1-0.2 mm) bifid, keels usually toothed to base, interkeel hairs often to base but mostly in upper ⅓, margins ciliate above. Callus 0.1-0.2 mm, ± glabrous; articulation flat. Rachilla 0.8-1.1 mm, short stiff hairy. Lodicules 0.6-1.0 mm, lobed, occasionally hair-tipped. Anthers 0.5-0.9-(1.2) in cleistogamous florets, 1.2-1.6 mm in chasmogamous florets, purple. Gynoecium: ovary 0.6-0.8 mm, hispid hairs at apex, glabrous on Campbell Id; stigma-styles 1-1.25 mm in cleistogamous florets, 1.6 mm in chasmogamous florets. Caryopsis 2.5-3 mm; embryo 0.5 mm; hilum 2-2.25 mm.
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