Tall, erect, coarse, densely tufted perennial tussock with stout culms; branching extravaginal, cataphylls hairy. Sheath to 10 cm, with abundant long (0.5 mm) hairs from swollen bases, terminating in a tuft of long hairs to 2.5 mm. Ligule to 0.5 mm, conspicuously hair-fringed. Lamina to 30 cm × 1 mm diam., loosely inrolled, stiff, harsh abaxially with dense erect or retrorse ± stiff long (0.5 mm) hairs from swollen bases in columns between nerves, adaxially with abundant short hairs or prickle-teeth, margins with long hairs or prickle teeth. Collar curved, hairfringed. Culms to 1 m, nodes densely retrorsely pilose as also internodes below. Inflorescence to 35 cm, violet or violet-suffused, narrow, subtended by hairs or hairy bracts; rachis scabrous, branches and pedicels with short stiff hairs. Glumes unequal, 3-nerved, scabrous, produced into hyaline awn-like processes to 3 mm, < awn column, lower to 18 mm, upper to 15 mm. Lemma to 8 mm, fulvous, clothed in long white hairs, lobes minute or absent; coma to 3 mm; awn to 50 mm, 1-or weakly 2-geniculate, widely divergent, column twisted and hairy to 15 mm, less twisted for 8 mm, arista to 25 mm. Palea with long internerve hairs, apex sparsely hairy. Callus to 2.5 mm, hairs to 3 mm. Lodicules 2, ligulate, to 2 mm. Anthers to 1.5 mm in cleistogamic flowers, to 3.5 mm in chasmogamous flowers, penicillate.