Nearly glabrous and smooth perennial. Stems rather slender, smooth, 60-100 cm (in scrub sometimes sprawling and taller) by 2-3 mm. Leaves gradually narrowed to the acutish tip, somewhat puberulous on the upper side near the base, otherwise glabrous, minutely scabrid especially in the upper part, 4-9 mm wide, the upper ones distant, the middle ones more approximate (but not whorled); sheaths narrow, not winged, smooth, usually puberulous at the top; contraligule very short, much broader than long, obtuse, ciliate, with a narrow scarious margin. Inflorescence rather narrow, consisting of a terminal partial panicle and 2-5 lateral ones, 15-25 cm long, 3-5 cm wide; partial panicles dense, contiguous or the lower ones somewhat distant, compound, pyramidal; peduncles solitary or sometimes binate, shortly exserted from their sheaths; primary bracts overtopping the inflorescence, secondary ones small, setaceous. Spikelets unisexual, in clusters of 2-3, purplish brown; ♂ spikelets distinctly peduncled, slightly curved, oblonglanceolate, 3½-4 mm long; stamens 3; anthers linear, 1½-2 mm long; ♀ spikelets ovate, 4-4½ mm long, the ♂ part reduced to a single glume sometimes with vestigial stamens in its axil; glumes broadly ovate, acute or apiculate, minutely ciliolate. Disk deeply 3-lobed, lobes firm, broadly ovate, obtuse, appressed to the nut, entire or somewhat denticulate at the top, pale, greenish or reddish striolate, 1-1¼ mm long, sinuses acute. Nut shorter than the glumes, depressed-globose, not or hardly umbonu-late, glabrous and smooth, at first blackish, shining, white when mature, c. 2 mm by 2½-2 4/5 mm.
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Perennials. Rhizomes woody, covered with purple to purplish brown scales. Culms tufted, 60-120 cm tall, 2-3 mm wide, triquetrous, smooth, glabrous. Leaves cauline; sheath 2-7 cm, papery, glabrous; sheath at culm base brown to purplish brown, not winged, with 3 ovoid-lanceolate teeth of various sizes at opening; sheath at middle part of culm green, wing 1-3 mm wide; contraligule brown to reddish brown, shortly deltate, 1-3 mm, glabrous or ciliate; leaf blade linear, 15-60 cm × 6-9 mm, papery, slightly scabrous, glabrous. Involucral bracts leaflike, basalmost to 25 cm, sheathing; bractlets setaceous, base auriculate and hispid. Inflorescences paniculate, 10-20 cm, with 1-3 slightly distant lateral branches; branches 6-10 × 2-6 cm, slightly condensed. Spikelets 2 or 3 in a cluster, brown to purple, ca. 4 mm, unisexual. Male spikelets oblong-ovoid to narrowly ovoid-oblong; glumes 3-4 mm, membranous, margin sometimes ciliate; basal glumes keeled, apex aristate to apiculate. Female spikelets usually at base of branch, ovoid; glumes ovate-orbicular, keeled, apex acuminate. Male flowers: stamens 3. Female flowers: ovary pubescent; stigmas 3. Disk yellow, 1.6-2 mm in diam., deeply 3-lobed; lobes ovate, margin reflexed, apex obtuse to rounded. Nutlet white, ± spherical, ca. 2.5 mm in diam., smooth, glabrous.
Open wet places: road-sides, light forests, brushwood, at low altitudes, up to 700 m (according to MERRILL in the Philippines up to 1200 m).
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