Perennial. Culms loosely tufted, 30–70 cm tall, ca. 2 mm in diam., glabrous or with retrorse hairs, 3- or 4-noded. Leaf sheaths pubescent, auricles present; leaf blades erect, flat or rolled when dry, 10–25 cm × 2–5 mm, ± pubescent, midrib raised abaxially; ligule 1–3 mm, abaxial surface and margin hairy, toothed. Panicle spreading, 12–24 cm, nodding; branches (1–)2–4 per node, up to 10 cm, scabrid, each bearing 1–3 spikelets, or basal branch with branchlets and 4–5 spikelets. Spikelets 12–20 × 6–8 mm, hairy throughout, florets (2–)5–8, lax, flabellate at anthesis; rachilla internodes 1–3 mm, pubescent; glumes shortly hairy, apex acuminate to aristiform, lower glume ca. 8 mm, 1-veined, upper glume 10–15 mm, 3-veined; lemmas lanceolate, 10–15 × ca. 1.5 mm in side view, 5-veined, back pubescent, awned from apex; awn 8–15 mm, recurved; palea 8–10 mm, keels ciliolate. Anthers 2–3 mm. Fl. Jul.

* Cupressus forests, grassy places, sunny slopes, exposed crevices; 3500–4300 m. Qinghai, W Sichuan, Xizang, Yunnan.