Perennials, rhizome stout, 2–3 mm in diam.; shoots mainly extravaginal. Culms erect, (30–)50–115 cm tall, 2–4 mm in diam., smooth, nodes 2 or 3, none or 1 exserted, base enclosed by withered fibrous sheaths. Leaf sheaths loose, smooth, 6–20 cm, several × as long as blade, uppermost closed for 1/6–1/4 of length; blade grayish green, flat or folded, papery, 4–20(–50) cm, 2–8 mm wide, abaxially smooth, adaxially scabrid along the prominent veins, apex slender prow-tipped; ligule white or off-white, 1.5–4 mm, abaxially scabrid, apex truncate, ciliolate, collar margins ciliolate or glabrous. Panicle open, well exserted, (6.5–)10–35 × 10–32 cm; branches widely spreading, strict, 2–5 per node, stout, scabrid angled, longest (5–)10–20 cm, divaricately branching in distal 1/2, with spikelets in distal 1/4. Spikelets ovate to lanceolate, purple or tawny, (5–)6–10 mm, florets 3–5; glumes narrowly to broadly lanceolate, keel scabrid, lower glume 3–4 mm, 1-or 3-veined, upper glume 4–5 mm, 3-veined, margins smooth or proximally sparsely scabrid to ciliate; lemmas broadly lanceolate, 4–5.5(–6) mm, glabrous throughout or base minutely hairy, intermediate veins indistinct, margins sometimes sparsely scabrid or ciliate; callus glabrous; palea proximally scabrid to pilulose between keels, keels distally scabrid, medially ciliate, pilulose or villous. Anthers 1.6–2.6(–3) mm. Fl. and fr. Jun–Jul. 2n = 28, 42, 91, 97.
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