Perennial. Culms 3–4 ft. long, at first erect from a short moderately stout rhizome, afterwards spreading, terete, finely striate, in the greater part pubescent to pilose with appressed or spreading silky white hairs, towards the panicle very sparsely pubescent to glabrous and smooth, many-noded with the nodes villous, branched from about the middle. Leaf-sheaths loose, finely striate and tubercled, as long as or more often shorter than the internodes, pubescent to pilose; ligule reduced to a narrow ciliate rim with hairs 1/3 lin. long; blade linear, narrowed at the base, long and finely acute, 3–6 in. long, 2 1/2–3 1/2 lin. wide, finely nerved, flat, pale green, glabrous or sparsely pubescent above and below with weak white hairs from minute tubercles, margins scaberulous, tubercled and shortly ciliate. Panicle up to 8 in. long, narrowly oblong, base enclosed in the uppermost inflated leaf-sheath, moderately lax; rhachis smooth, finely striate, slender; branches erect, 2-nate, alternate, twice-divided, smooth; branchlets and pedicels minutely puberulous, capillary, flexuous, the latter 1/4–1 lin. long, with pale thickened tips. Spikelets oblong, 1 1/4 lin. long, glabrous, pale green and tinged with purple towards the tips, finely nerved. Lower glume ovate, obtuse, 1/6 lin. long, nerveless, hyaline; upper elliptic-oblong when flattened, as long as the spikelet, shortly 2-lobed with the lobes broadly ovate, acute, one-fourth the length of the glume, with a very fine awn up to 2 lin. long from the sinus, thinly membranous, finely 7-nerved, nerves anastomosing below the lobes. Lower floret barren: valve narrowly oblong when flattened, slightly shorter than and similar in texture to the upper glume, finely 5-nerved, 2-lobed with the lobes finely acute and one-third the length of valve, awned from the sinus, awn 5–6 lin. long, pale green or purplish, flexuous; valvule 0. Upper floret hermaphrodite: valve ovate, 3/4 lin. long, 2-fid, obscurely 3-nerved; valvule of similar size, shape and texture, but obtuse; anthers linear, 7/8 lin. long.
