Perennial. Culms loosely tufted, geniculately ascending to shortly decumbent and rooting at lowest nodes, 30–70 cm tall, branching in lower part, nodes bearded. Leaf sheaths loose, villous; leaf blades linear-lanceolate, 5–20 × 0.3–0.9 cm, villous, margins thickened, smooth, base constricted, apex acuminate; ligule 1–3 mm. Racemes terminal, paired, appressed back to back, 5–8 cm, long exserted; rachis internodes and pedicels stoutly cuneate, triquetrous, villous. Sessile spikelet broadly oblong or obovate, 8–10 × 2.5–3.5 mm; lower glume leathery toward base, flanks rounded in lower 1/3, villous with stiff ca. 3 mm hairs, papyraceous and puberulous above, keeled and winged above middle, wings ca. 0.8 mm wide with ciliolate margin, apex truncate-denticulate; upper glume keeled and winged above middle, villous on midline below wing; awn of upper lemma weakly geniculate, up to 1.5 cm. Pedicelled spikelet laterally compressed, otherwise resembling sessile, awnless. Fl. and fr. Jun–Sep.
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