perennial; culms tufted, erect, simple, 1–3 ft. long, smooth, glabrous or scaberulous, finely striate, about 3-noded; internodes gradually longer from the base, up to 1 ft. or more long; sheaths rather tight, smooth or scabrid, rarely reversedly hispidulous, striate, usually very much shorter than the internodes except the lowest, the basal 1 or 2 bladeless, acute; ligules scarious, white, ovate, obtuse, 1–2 lin. long; blades linear, gradually tapering, acute, up to 3 in. by 1–1 1/2 lin., the upper very short, rather rigid, glabrous, smooth or scabrid, rarely reversedly hispidulous, prominently many-nerved; panicle erect, spike-like, sometimes interrupted near the base, up to 2 in. long, shiny, pallid; rhachis glabrous; pedicels with spreading hairs; spikelets oblong-lanceolate, 3 1/2–4 lin. long, pallid; glumes lanceolate to ovate-anceolate (in profile), acuminate, scaberulous on the keels, lower 2 1/2–3 lin. long, 1-nerved, hyaline, upper 3 1/2–4 lin. long, 3- (very rarely 1-) nerved, subhyaline; lowest floret ♂ or barren: valve about 2 1/2 lin. long, 5-nerved, with a short straight awn from above the middle; intermediate floret equal and very similar to the preceding, always empty, with a kneed awn 4 lin. long from below the middle; uppermost floret hermaphrodite, 1–1 1/4 lin. long; valve 5-nerved; anthers 1 1/4–1 1/2 lin. long; grain 7/8 lin. long. null
