Large, coarse, erect, perennial clumps with densely crowded leaves from stout, short, or sometimes far-creeping rhizomes; branching intravaginal. Leaf-sheath long, chartaceous, rounded, strongly ribbed, light creamy brown or sometimes pinkish, usually with scattered to dense, stiff, ± appressed hairs, sometimes glabrous. Ligule 1-2 mm, to 4.5 mm on upper leaves, a membranous densely long-ciliate rim. Leaf-blade (25)-40-60-(100) cm × 1-3 mm diam., inrolled or folded, or flat and up to 7 mm wide, linear, very long tapering, abaxially with some scattered hairs, scabrid above, adaxially deeply furrowed, ribs finely scabrid or smooth; margins scabrid above, tip long, fine, flexuous. Culm 75-120 cm, erect, terete, internodes very minutely scabrid below inflorescence. Panicle (16)-20-40 cm, spike-like, erect or ± nodding, straw-coloured, light brown to sometimes purple suffused; rachis densely finely scabrid. Spikelets 4.5-6 mm, densely crowded, almost sessile, lanceolate, acute or acuminate, solitary or rarely paired within an involucre of numerous, fine, minutely scabrid bristles, one bristle much stouter and longer 9-15-(20) mm, remaining bristles usually slightly > spikelet (6-10 mm). Glumes « spikelet, hyaline, glabrous, nerveless or 1-nerved; lower 0.5-0.8 mm or 0, upper 0.8-1.7 mm. Lower floret Ø: lemma 4-6 mm, 5-nerved, hyaline, very minutely scabrid; palea 0. Upper floret ☿: lemma 4.5-5.5 mm, 5-nerved, submembranous, smooth below, often minutely scabrid towards acute apex; palea 4-5 mm, of similar texture to lemma, 2-nerved, faintly scabrid towards apex; lodicules 0.3-0.6 mm; anthers 2.5-4 mm; caryopsis c. 2 mm.