Dense rather shining tussock, 30-100 cm, sometimes hanging down steep banks and up to 2 m, with light brownish green sometimes glaucous leaves smooth to the touch; branching intravaginal; leaf-blades persistent. Leaf-sheath pale green, later creamy brown, shining, ± membranous, smooth, or very minutely scabrid throughout, ribs inconspicuous. Ligule c. 0.5 mm, truncate, short-ciliate, abaxially minutely hairy. Leaf-blade (10)-20-60 cm ×c. 1-1.5-(2.5) mm, folded or ± flat, coriaceous, abaxially glabrous, midrib and lateral ribs not very prominent, adaxially closely minutely pubescent throughout; margins inrolled, scabrid, midnerve scabrid near acicular, often pungent tip. Culm (10)-20-50-(70) cm, ≤ leaves, internodes smooth to scabrid below panicle. Panicle (5)-10-20-(25) cm, open; branches slender, ± erect to spreading, sparsely to very closely scabrid, naked below, spikelets many on shorter secondary branchlets. Spikelets (3.5)-6-9 mm, (2)-3-5-flowered, light green to later light brown. Glumes subequal, (2)-3.5-5-(6) mm, acute to subacuminate, sparsely minutely scabrid to smooth, midnerve with sparse prickle-teeth in upper ½; lower 1-(3)-nerved, narrow-lanceolate, upper 3-(5)-nerved, elliptic-lanceolate; margins membranous with scattered fine prickle-teeth above or almost throughout. Lemma 3-5-(6) mm, 5-nerved, elliptic-oblong, obtuse, minutely scabrid, midnerve with long crinkled hairs in lower ½, scabrid above, outer lateral nerves with crinkled hairs near base; margins membranous, sparsely minutely scabrid. Palea (2)-3-4 mm, keels densely ciliate-scabrid, interkeel minutely scabrid to pubescent-scabrid, flanks short-scabrid. Callus with tuft of crinkled hairs. Rachilla c. 1 mm, scabrid or with occasional hairs. Lodicules c. 0.5 mm, occasionally hair-tipped. Anthers (1)-2-3 mm. Caryopsis c. 1 × 0.5 mm. 2n= 84. Plate 7D.
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