Culms stiffly erect at base, 30–60 cm tall, 1–2 mm in diam., hard and unbranched in lower part, repeatedly branched forming dense fascicles of very slender branchlets in upper part. Leaf sheaths glabrous or puberulous, mouth long ciliate; leaf blades stiff, 1.5–5.5 × 0.15–0.4 cm, scabrid, apex acuminate. Raceme 1.3–3 cm (excluding awns), yellowish; rachis internodes and pedicels ca. 1/2 spikelet length, hairs silky white. Sessile spikelet 2.3–3 mm, thinly cartilaginous; callus hairs shorter than spikelet; lower glume scabrid or puberulous on back, apex ciliate with 0.5–1 mm hairs; upper glume awn 1.3–2 cm; lower floret staminate, lemma slightly shorter than lower glume, palea subequaling lemma; awn of upper lemma 1.5–1.8 cm, weakly geniculate near base, column not strongly demarcated, limb very fine. Stamens 2, anthers ca. 1.8 mm. Pedicelled spikelet similar to sessile but smaller; lower glume awnless. Fl. and fr. Mar–Oct.