Leaves coriaceous, linear, with the midnerve prominent beneath and 2 of the lateral nerves prominent above, rather gradually attenuate towards the slender, triquetrous, aculeate-scabrous tip, remotely aculeate-scabrous on the margins and the upper part of the midnerve on the lower side, hardly narrowed towards the conduplicate base, septate-nodulose by numerous cross-nervules, glaucous, paler beneath, (45 cm-)1-1½ m by 1-2½ cm; sheaths stramineous. Scapes lateral, rather robust, much shorter than the leaves, obtusely trigonous, thickened at the apex, smooth, glaucous, (10-)45-90 cm by 1½-2 mm (up to 4 mm at the top), the base clothed with some lanceolate, acute, striate sheaths, the upper sheaths widened upwards, with scarious brown margins, up to 15 cm. Inflorescence consisting of a single spikelet (very rarely 1 or 2 lateral spikelets in the axils of the lower glumes), conical, acute, 2-3½(-4) by 1-1½(-2) cm. Glumes coriaceous, oblong-lanceolate, obtuse, greenish with narrow scarious brown margins, the lower empty ones many-nerved, 8-10 by 4-5 mm, the fertile upper ones less firm, oblong, less nerved, 8-9 by 2½-3 mm. Flowers about as long as the glumes; outermost scales ciliate on the keel in the upper half. Anthers not seen. Style 3-cleft, sometimes some of them 2-cleft. Nut lageniform, subglobose in the centre, distinctly beaked, constricted towards the base and then conspicuously widened, truncate at the very base, shortly stipitate, with 3 longitudinal ribs, brown, 5-7 by 2½-3 mm.
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