Slender, wiry, green tufts, shortly rhizomatous; leaves semi-pungent, « culms; branching both intra-and extravaginal, swollen at base. Leaf-sheath glabrous, pale, becoming grey-brown, some with scattered, long hairs above; apical tuft of hairs to 2.5 mm. Ligule 0.05-0.1 mm. Leaf-blade up to 22 cm, thick, flat to inrolled, usually scattered to fairly dense, long, fine hairs, margins minutely scabrid. Culm to 80 cm, internodes smooth, or finely scabrid below inflorescence. Panicle racemose, erect, to 7 cm, of few large spikelets on slender pedicels; rachis and pedicels densely clothed with short stiff hairs, and occasional longer hairs below spikelets and at branch axils. Spikelets 5-6-flowered, awns much exceeding glumes. Glumes usually purplish near margin and sometimes elsewhere, lanceolate, narrowing to long acute tip, ± equal, 13-20 mm; lower 11-13-nerved, upper 9-nerved. Lemma 3-4 mm, 9-nerved, upper row of hairs very dense, continuous, < lemma lobes, lower row lacking except for short marginal tufts, elsewhere shining, glabrous, margins shortly hair-fringed above; lobes 8-13 mm, soon tapering to long awns; central awn 12-17 mm, column to 2-4.5 mm ≤ upper lemma hairs. Palea 5-6.2 mm, abruptly narrowed above, < upper lemma hairs, interkeel and margins glabrous. Callus 1.0-1.4 mm, marginal hair tufts reaching lower marginal lemma tufts. Rachilla 0.1-0.2 mm. Anthers 0.5-0.7 and 1.9-3 mm. Caryopsis 2-2.7 × 1-1.4 mm; embryo 1-1.5 mm; hilum c. 0.6 mm.
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Plants caespitose; innovation buds intravaginal. Culms 28–60 cm high. Inflorescences ovate or linear-lanceolate. Spikelets 12–17 mm long, with 5–6 florets. Glumes slightly exceeding florets; lower glume 11–20 mm long, c. 3 mm wide. Lemma: body 3–4.5 mm long, glabrous between the rows of tufts; upper row of hair tufts complete; lower row only of marginal tufts, not reaching or equalling the upper row; lobes as long as body; setae 2–6 mm long, shorter than to as long as (rarely longer than) lobes; awn 10–15.5 mm long, exceeding setae; awn column tightly twisted, shorter than or equalling lobes. Palea elliptic to ovate, 3.7–5.8 mm long, broad, 1–3 times as long as wide, slightly exceeding to much exceeding lemma sinus. Anthers 0.4–3.4 mm long. Caryopsis 1.8–2.2 mm long.
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