densely cæspitose; culms erect, 1/3–1 1/2 ft. long, glabrous, simple, or branched at the base; leaves all basal, with scattered fine spreading hairs all over to glabrous; sheaths crowded, rather firm, pallid, smooth, persistent; blades usually setaceous or filiform, very acute, 3 to more than 12 in. long, sometimes flat and then up to 1 lin. broad, rather rigid; panicle 3/4–3 in. by 3–3 1/2 lin., sometimes interrupted at the base; branches solitary, adpressed to the rhachis; lowest 1/3 to almost 1 in. long, divided from the base or nearly so, smooth; pedicels unequal, mostly very short; spikelets about 2 lin. long, densely crowded, usually dark purple; glumes, valves and pales equally villous from fine greyish hairs; glumes about 1 1/2 lin. long, tips firm, subulate; valves very slightly shorter, often mucronulate; anthers 2/3 lin. long; grain 7/8–1 lin. long, reddish-brown. null