Loosely to densely tufted green or greyish-green rhizomatous perennial; culms (15-) 20-70(-90)cm high, erect or geniculately ascending. Leaf-blades flat, folded or bristle-like, 3-40cm long, 0.8-4(-6) mm wide, abruptly contracted to a blunt hooded tip, scabrid on the margins; ligule blunt, 1(-3)mm long. Panicle lanceolate, ovate, pyramidal or oblong, 6-15(-20)cm long, erect or nodding, loose and open to contracted and rather dense; branches 3-5 at the lower nodes, ascending or spreading, flexuous, scaberulous. Spikelets 2-5-flowered, ovate or oblong, 2.5-6mm long ; glumes unequal, the lower ovate, 1.5-3.5mm long, 1-nerved, the upper ovate or elliptic, 2-4mm long, 3-nerved; lemmas oblong to oblong-ovate in side-view, 2-4mm long, blunt or subacute, ciliate on the keel and marginal nerves, with very copious wool at the base; palea as long as the lemma, scabrid along the keels; anthers 1.5-2mm long.