Culms densely tufted, 50–80(–100) cm tall, 2–4-noded, smooth and glabrous, scabrous, or with dense, short, soft hairs below spike. Leaf sheath smooth, glabrous; ligule 0.3–1 mm; leaf blade glaucous to grayish green, flat or involute, 4–18 × 0.2–8 cm, glabrous to scabrous, margin scabrous. Spike (5–)9–12 × (0.5–)0.7–1.2 cm; rachis very brittle, puberulent, margin hirsute. Spikelets 2 or 3 per node, greenish, yellowish brown at maturity, narrowly elliptic, 0.8–1.1 cm, with 1 or 2(or 3) florets. Glumes (4–)5–8 mm, obscurely 1-veined, scabrous or puberulent only proximally and distally. Lemma lanceolate, (7–)8–11 mm including awn 1–2(–3) mm, usually with short, stiff hairs or long, soft hairs. Palea slightly shorter than lemma. Lodicules 1.3–1.5 mm. Anthers yellow or purple, 3.8–4.8 mm. Caryopsis 4.3–5 mm. Fl. and fr. May–Sep.

Grasslands on mountain slopes, stony or pebbly calcareous or schistose mountain slopes, steppes, roadsides, or as a field weed; 1500–2000(–5500) m. Gansu, Nei Mongol, Xinjiang [Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia; cultivated in North America].