Perennial without an apparent rhizome, but with aggregated woody stem bases; stems 25–35 cm long and 0.6–1.5 mm thick, terete or slightly angular with many low longitudinal ridges, glabrous, yellowish below, green above. Leaves 10–20 cm long and c. 1 mm wide, folded or inrolled with a narrow pale scabrid marginal border, the numerous crowded old basal sheaths forming a bone-like cylinder; blades filiform, 0.3–0.5 mm wide. Inflorescence a simple anthela 4–8 x 2–7 cm, usually with 8–15 spreading or reflexed spikelets from a c. 1 cm long axis, rarely depauperate anthelas contain 2–5 spikelets only; involucral bract solitary, but may appear as 2–3 since the 1–2 lowermost spikelets have subtending bracts ending in a filiform, reflexed, 5–15 cm long leaf-blade. Spikelets 15–40 mm long (the largest in each anthela always at least 25 mm long) and 3–4 mm wide, linear with acute apex, mostly 20–35-flowered. Glumes 5–6 mm long, ovate-elliptic, medium to dark reddish brown with a prominent pale marginal border and 5–7 slender but prominent nerves on each side of the midrib that is green in the upper half and excurrent into a c. 1 mm long straight or slightly recurved green awn. Style with 3 branches. Nutlet c. 1 x 0.5 mm, obovate, rounded-triangular, medium reddish brown to greyish, minutely papillose.