Caespitose perennial, 25-40 cm. Rhizome short, branching. Stem lateral, c. 0.8 mm diam., sharply trigonous, scabrous and finely papillose, sides concave above. Leaves of lateral, sterile shoots longer than stem; sheaths 10-40 mm, dark greyish brown, disintegrating into fibres, margin of scarious side concave; ligule c. 0.3 mm, scarious, ciliate, arch as high as wide; blades 3-4 mm wide, flat or slightly revolute, greyish brown, adaxial side scabrous and papillose, abaxial side smooth or slightly papillose, margins scabrous. Inflorescence of male spike and 1-2 female, sometimes gynobasic spikes below. Bracts green, lowest to longer than the inflorescence, sheath up to 7 mm. Male spike 15-25 x 1.5-2 mm, fusiform or club-shaped, glumes c. 4.2 x 1.2 mm, ovate to obovate, obtuse, yellowish brown, with narrow scarious margin. Female spikes 10-15 x 5-6 mm, rather lax, green, when 2 spikes, lower with peduncle to 90 mm; glumes 4-4.5 x 1.3-1.5 mm, ovate to triangular, midnerve green, sides light brown, barbed arista to 1.7 mm; utricles 6.1-6.5 x 2.2-2.4 mm, fusiform or ellipsoid, trigonous, tightly sheathing fruit, green, shiny, obscurely to clearly nerved, upper part somewhat puberulent, stipe to 0.5 mm, beak 1.5-1.6 mm, conical, bidentate, green, puberulent, margins smooth or scabrous. Stigmas 3. Nut c. 3.5 x 1.6-1.8 mm, ellipsoid to obovoid, trigonous, light-brown, obscurely reticulate and papillose; style base enlarged, constricted from nut, caducous.