perennial; branched at the base, branches very short, in compact fascicles of short densely leafy innovation-shoots and flowering culms; culms geniculate or erect, slender, 1/2–1 ft. long, glabrous, smooth, or slightly viscous, 2–3-noded, internodes exserted; sheaths of the barren shoots closely imbricate, very short, broad, strongly striate, covered more or less with wool, persistent, sheaths of culm-leaves very tight, glabrous, smooth; ligule a dense, very short, woolly fringe; blades of the barren shoots linear, subobtuse, or with a callous point, 1/3–1 1/2 in. by 1/2–1 1/4 lin., flat or folded, rigid, usually obliquely erect, sometimes spreading and curved, glaucous, smooth below, strongly nerved and densely scabrid above; culm-blades acute or subacute, up to 3 in. long; panicle oblong or ovoid-oblong, erect, dense or somewhat lax, 1–2 1/2 in. long; axis slender, angular, smooth, or slightly rough; branches solitary, obliquely erect or spreading, up to 1 in. long, divided from the base or from 2–3 lin. above it, filiform, angular, scaberulous; pedicels very short; spikelets crowded, more or less secund, strongly compressed, ovate to oblong, 2–3 lin. by 1–1 1/2 lin., 5–12-flowered, pallid or slightly tinged with purple; rhachilla flexuous, disarticulating; glumes subequal, oblong in profile, acute, 1 lin. long, somewhat rigidly membranous, keel stout and scabrid; valves very broad, elliptic-oblong in profile, truncate, 1 lin. long, finely granular, somewhat rigidly membranous except at the very narrow hyaline margins and a hyaline area along the keel, side-nerves strong, prominent, keel slightly rough; pales equal to the valves, keels acute and scabrid; anthers 1/2– 2/3 lin. long. null
