Plants cespitose; rhizomes short, tough, fibrous. Culms: fertile ones lax, reclining, inflorescences lopping over to (or nearly to) ground; nodes without axillary bulblets. Leaves 7–11 per culm; sheaths of proximal leaves light brown or whitish; proximal sheaths and blades with septa few to many, conspicuous or not; blades 30–63 cm × 9–14 mm. Inflorescences terminal, rarely also with 1 lateral inflorescence from distal leaf axil; rays ascending or divaricate (usually both in same inflorescence), proximal branches smooth, distal branches smooth or scabrellous, rays often bearing axillary bulblets; bases of involucral bracts green or margins brown or at least speckled with red-brown, not glutinous. Spikelets in dense clusters of 3–19 (largest cluster with 12 or more), spikelets sessile, ovoid or broadly ovoid, 3–4 × 2–3 mm; scales blackish with pale midribs, elliptic or broadly elliptic, 1.3–1.9 mm, apex mucronate, mucro 0.1–0.2 mm. Flowers: perianth bristles persistent, 6, slender, straight or curved, shorter than to slightly exceeding achene, with retrorse, thin-walled, round-tipped barbs in distal 0.2–0.5, enclosed within scales; styles 3-fid. Achenes almost white, elliptic or obovate in outline, plano-convex or plumply trigonous, 1–1.2 × 0.4–0.6 mm. 2n = 54.
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