Perennial, shortly rhizomatous; roots thick, villous. Culms stout, rooting at lower nodes, ascending, 80–140 cm tall, 4–5 mm in diam., glabrous, 5–9-noded. Leaf sheaths longer than internodes, lower pubescent, usually closed to above middle, upper glabrous, outer margin ciliate; leaf blades broadly linear, 15–35 cm, 5–15 mm wide, scabrid or adaxial surface puberulent, margins stiffly ciliate toward ligule; ligule brown, thick, 1–2 mm. Panicle lax, elliptic to narrowly elliptic-oblong in outline, 10–22 cm, much branched, densely spiculate, silvery yellowish green; branches 4–6 or more at lowest node, smooth, longest 6–8 cm. Spikelets 5–7 mm, florets 2 or 3; rachilla hairs 1–1.2 mm; glumes unequal, lower glume 3–4 mm, upper glume 4–6 mm; callus glabrous; lemmas thinly herbaceous with broad hyaline margins, 5–6 mm, finely scabrid, awned from middle to upper 1/3, apex subentire, 2-mucronate; awn 4.5–6 mm, recurved or with short twisted column; palea 3/4 lemma length, keels scaberulous. Anthers 2.5–3 mm. Fl. and fr. Jun–Sep.

This is the most robust species in China, remarkable for itsthick, hairy roots, stout culms, large panicle of pale spikelets, and thin-textured spikelets.

* Grassy roadsides, damp places in forests; below 2400 m. Anhui, Henan, Hubei, Jiangsu, Jiangxi, Shaanxi, Shanxi (Ruicheng, Yuanqu), SE Sichuan, Zhejiang (Lin'an).