Narrow, glabrous, shortly rhizomatous, ± fan-shaped tufts, from rather woody, creeping, sometimes arching stolons, to 2 mm diam.; often forming dense mats to 1 m diam., with rather short, wide leaves and wiry, ± filiform, very narrow, ± drooping culms; branching intravaginal. Leaf-sheath whitish green to light brown, sometimes purplish, coriaceous, glabrous, compressed and strongly keeled; margins wide, membranous. Ligule 0.2-0.3 mm, minutely ciliate, hairs < 0.5 mm, sometimes extending as a contra-ligule. Leaf-blade (2)-5-12 cm × 2-7 mm, linear, scarcely narrowed above, flat or folded, often keeled towards tip, stiffly herbaceous, glabrous, ribs few, well-spaced; margins scarcely thickened, with a few scattered long hairs near base and scabrid near obtuse tip. Culm (6)-20-55 cm, nodes glabrous, or rarely villous, internodes glabrous. Inflorescence of 2-3, rarely 4, slender, ± erect racemes. Racemes 3.5-7.5 cm; rachis triangular, minutely scabrid on narrow wings, bearing close-set, subsessile, alternate spikelets in 2 rows. Spikelets c. 2 mm, green or purplish, oblong-elliptic, obtuse or subacute. Lower glume 0. Upper glume = spikelet, firmly membranous, 4-nerved, the 2 pairs of nerves near each margin, outer internerves often with a few soft hairs. Lower floret: lemma similar to upper glume. Upper floret: lemma 1.6-1.8 mm, elliptic, obtuse, thinly crustaceous, glabrous, shining, cream, very minutely punctulate-striolate; palea of same texture, slightly shorter and narrower than lemma, keels very rounded; anthers 0.7-1 mm; caryopsis c. 1.2 × 0.7 mm.