Infl. a terminal, contracted panicle of ∞, sessile spikelets in confluent clusters; the clusters alternate in lower part of infl. but spirally arranged above, each cluster subtended by a rigid, harsh bract similar to the lvs. Spikelets ∞, globose, many-fld. Glumes spirally imbricate, the lowest empty, often shorter and wider than the upper floriferous ones; fls hermaphrodite. Hypog. bristles 0. Stamens 3. Styles 3-fld. Nut obovoid, concavo-convex. Perennial herb with thick, woody rhizome and harshly scabrid lvs. Culms trigonous. Monotypic and endemic to N.Z.