Culms 4–6 m, 1–2 cm in diam.; internodes gray-green, usually with purple speckles, initially usually white powdery below nodes and sparsely setulose; nodes elevated, supra-nodal ridge more prominent than sheath scar. Culm sheaths yellow-green with purple-green base, brown strigose, margins ciliate; auricles small; oral setae 2 to several; ligule truncate, ca. 1 mm, white ciliate; blade erect, brown-green, ovate-lanceolate or lanceolate, base ca. 1/2 as wide as apex of culm sheath. Leaves 5–9 per flowering branch; sheath with purple speckles, glabrous; auricles not developed; oral setae 2 or 3; ligule purple, truncate, 0.5–1 mm, weakly exserted, hairy; blade 12–20 × 0.8–1.3 cm, both surfaces glabrous, abaxially transverse veins distinct, rectangular. Racemes or small panicles with 2–4 spikelets, partially exserted from leaf sheaths; axis and branches slender, glabrous or branches sparsely hirtellous along angles. Spikelets lanceolate, 3–8 × ca. 0.5 cm; florets 5–15. Glumes 2, 1st smaller, 8–9 mm; lemma purple speckled, 1.7–2 cm, deciduously pubescent, apex with mucro 2–3 mm; palea 1.2–1.4 cm, pubescent, keels sparsely ciliolate, apex obtuse, thickly hairy; lodicules 3. Stamens 3. Style 1; stigmas 3.