Perennial; culms over 3 ft. high, erect, 2–3-noded below the spatheate panicle. Leaf-sheaths tight, firm, quite glabrous, the lower keeled upwards, long-persistent, the intermediate and upper much shorter than the internodes; ligules very short, ciliolate; blades folded, linear from the base, shortly acute, up to 8 in. long and 2 lin. wide (when expanded), firm, glabrous, scaberulous upwards and on the margins, nerves fine, close. Inflorescence a lax scanty spatheate panicle about 3 ft. long, of 5–7 distant downwards mixed 2–3-rayed tiers; lower and intermediate spathes resembling the preceding leaves, except for the shorter blades; rays filiform, erect, strict or more or less flexuous and arching, if compound the lower internode up to over 4 in. long. Spatheoles very narrow, acute, or bearing rudimentary subulate or mucroniform blades, 3–4 in. long, slightly purplish, at length tightly inrolled; peduncles at length distinctly and often long-exserted. Racemes usually paired, rarely ternate, the basal 1 (or 2) sessile, 1 1/2–2 in. long, loose, flexuous; joints filiform, slightly widened upwards and ending in a small dentate cup, 2 lin. long, ciliate, hairs white, up to 1/2 lin. long; pedicels very similar, more slender. Sessile spikelet narrow, linear-lanceolate, acute, 2–3 lin. long, dull purplish or yellowish; callus very shortly bearded. Glumes subequal; lower minutely 2-dentate, nerveless and depressed between the scaberulous keels; upper very acute, sub-3-nerved, ciliate. Lower floret reduced to a narrow lanceolate acute 2-nerved reversedly ciliate valve, almost 2 1/2 lin. long. Upper floret hermaphrodite: valve linear-oblong, 2-fid to about one-quarter, with acute lobes, awn very fine, 5–8 lin. long, column 2–2 1/2 lin. long, dark, bristle 3–5 lin. long. Anthers 1 1/2 lin. long. Pedicelled spikelet ♂, lanceolate, 2–2 3/4 lin. long, reddish or purplish; lower glume produced into a short fine bristle, 3–5-nerved; upper similar, 3-nerved, ciliate; valve of lower floret similar to the upper glume but hyaline, of the upper floret shorter, 1-nerved; valvule oblong, nerveless, 1/4 lin. long.