Rhizome neck ca. 50 cm. Culms 2.5–7 m, 1.2–3 cm in diam.; internodes green, rarely light yellow striped, terete, 20–23 cm, glabrous, smooth, solid or nearly so; nodes with level supra-nodal ridge; sheath scar prominent with or without persistent remains of sheath base. Branches 5–9, roughly horizontal. Culm sheaths persistent, narrowly triangular, equal to or longer than internodes, basally cartilaginous, distally leathery, abaxially densely brown or dark brown setose, margins densely brown ciliate initially; auricles dark purple, triangular or elliptic; oral setae dense; ligule purple, arcuate, densely ciliate initially; blade erect, linear-lanceolate, glabrous. Leaves 3–5 per ultimate branch; leaf sheath margins glabrous; auricles absent; oral setae few, light yellow, 4–9 mm; ligule purple, arcuate, glabrous; blade linear-lanceolate, 8.5–19 × 1–1.6 cm, glabrous, secondary veins 5-paired, transverse veins indistinct, base cuneate, margins serrulate, apex acuminate. Inflorescence unknown. New shoots Jul–Aug.

The culms are used for weaving.

* 1900–2500 m. W Yunnan.