Perennial. Culms tufted, wiry, erect or rooting at lowest nodes, 20–70 cm tall, branching, 2–9-noded. Leaf sheaths hirsute with short tubercle-based hairs; leaf blades dark green or reddish, linear, 10–20 × 0.2–0.3 mm, hirsute, adaxial surface with broad white midrib, apex finely acuminate; ligule 0.4–0.5 mm. Racemes 2–3, slightly curved, 2–7 cm, divergent; rachis flattened, margins winged, wing margin scabrid or white-ciliate, internodes 1.5–2 mm; pedicels 0.4–0.5 mm, bearded on outer or both margins. Spikelets linear-oblong, 3.5–4.5 mm, reddish brown or nearly purplish; glumes papery, upper glume with broad scarious margins, back rounded, keeled and scabrid or narrowly winged below apex, or keeled and winged throughout, white-pilose near margins and on keel, apex acute; upper lemma oblanceolate, ca. 2.5 mm; awn 7–10 mm, geniculate; upper palea absent. Anthers 1.7–2 mm. Fl. and fr. autumn.

Swampy slopes, lakesides. Fujian, Guangdong, Guangxi, Taiwan [India, Myanmar, Thailand, Vietnam].