Loosely tufted annuals. Leaves: ligule a short fringe of hairs or hair-fringed membrane; blade linear. Inflorescences terminal, racemes in digitate or subdigitate clusters, with slender internodes and pedicels thickened upwards; pedicels free of rachis. Spikelets in pairs on segments of internode, the raceme disarticulating, after spikelets have been shed, at joints at the end of each segment. Spikelets unequally pedicellate, homomorphous, linear, lanceolate or narrowly elliptic, dorsally compressed. Glumes very dissimilar, membranous to chartaceous; lower glume shallowly concave, grooved, or flattened on back with apex notched or bifid; upper glume apex acute and awned. Spikelets 2-flowered, lower floret reduced to a minute hyaline lemma, sterile, lower palea absent or insignificant; upper floret bisexual, the upper lemma stipitiform, membranous, apex finely and obscurely dentate or bifid with a hairy geniculate median awn, palea absent or insignificant. Caryopsis dorsally compressed.
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