The whole plant 1/2 to almost 2 ft. high; innovations extravaginal, rooting from the base, 1–7 in. long, with 3–4 cataphylls, the lowest of them very short, rounded, the second 1/2–1 in. long, loosely sheathing, the following separated by an internode ultimately up to over 1/2 in. long, all silky at the nodes, otherwise mostly appressedly hairy between the nerves and ciliate along the margins or ciliate only or quite glabrous, quite bladeless, the uppermost 1 to over 6 in. long; the innovations growing out either directly into an erect or suberect leafy flowering culm or by the elongation of the first internode above the uppermost cataphyll into an inclined or arched runner-like or subprostrate base, sometimes over 1 ft. long, frequently rooting from its terminal node and throwing up from it an erect leafy culm or—by the formation of extravaginal buds—a scanty fascicle of leafy culms; these secondary culms sheathed at the base with 2 or 3 cataphylls and reduced in size, but otherwise repeating the characters of the primary. Perfect leaves 1–3; sheaths tight, firm, appressedly or loosely pubescent or glabrous between the prominent nerves, always silky-pubescent at the nodes and with a ciliate dorsal transverse rim at the junction with the blade; ligules a transverse firm ciliolate rim; blades lanceolate, subsymmetrical or somewhat oblique, gradually tapering from the middle or slightly below it towards both ends, 4 to almost 12 in. by 1–2 in., moderately firm, glabrous above, finely and appressedly pubescent underneath, midrib slender, prominent below, lateral nerves 35–50 per inch. Inflorescence long-exserted, 3–9 in. long; lower primary branches 1–3 in. apart and 1–3 in. long, with up to 6 spikelets, or if more (long branches) then usually some of them arrested; axes filiform, angular, minutely puberulous or pubescent, or, at the nodes, almost villosu lous; pedicels very unequal, the longest up to 2, or the terminal up to over 3 lin. long, scaberulous to puberulous, tips sometimes discoid. Spikelets 3 to almost 4 lin. long, very like those of M. barbinodis, if not occasionally more slender and much paler. Lower glume often 7-nerved. Fertile valve sometimes pubescent up to beyond the middle.
