Stout, pendent often sprawling, bright green tussock with persistent leaves and sheaths. Sheaths to 15 cm, shining yellow, keeled, persistent and entire, becoming fibrous, margin abundantly long hairy below, tuft of hairs at apex to 4 mm; adaxially with many minute internerve hairs. Ligule to 1.5 mm. Lamina to 50 cm × 10 mm, flat or shallowly Ushaped, smooth, persistent, adaxially glabrous except for long hairs on margin below and some short or long hairs, sometimes dense, at base. Culm to 70 cm, internodes glabrous. Inflorescence to 20 cm, very congested; rachis and main branches glabrous but with some long hairs at axils; pedicels short and densely hairy. Spikelets of up to 6 florets. Glumes acute or slightly awned, < adjacent lemma lobes, many prickle teeth abaxially and a few adaxially; lower to 12 mm, 1-3-nerved, upper to 16 mm, 5- nerved. Lemma to 9 mm; hairs dense at margin and in all internerves though sometimes absent from all or some, < sinus, prickle teeth abundant abaxially and adaxially on lobes and margins; lateral lobes to 5 mm including awn to 3 mm or acute, rarely dividing from awn at sinus; central awn to 22 mm from indistinct straight column. Palea to 10 mm, prickle teeth abaxially and on flanks. Rachilla to 0.5 mm. Callus to 1.5 mm, hairs to 5 mm. Lodicules to 1.75 mm. Anthers to 5.5 mm in male-fertile flowers, up to 3 mm in male-sterile flowers. Gynoecium of male-fertile flowers with stigmastyles to 3.5 mm, ovary to 1.5 mm, and of malesterile flowers to 5 mm, ovary 1.5 mm. Caryopsis to 3.5 mm. Gynodioecious.

2n = 42

2n = 42

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