Perennial. Leaf-blades linear, flat at first but soon becoming inrolled; ligule a ciliate fringe. Inflorescence open, composed of a number of spikes spread along a central axis. Spikelets 5-6-flowered with the two lowermost lemmas empty and resembling the glumes, ovate with a serrate outline, laterally compressed, subsessile on the slender flattened rhachis, disarticulating between the florets or the spikelet falling when only one or two florets have been shed; glumes 1-nerved, membranous, shorter than the lemmas; fertile lemmas 5-nerved, firmer than the glumes, keeled, shortly hairy on the keel, awnless. Grain ellipsoid, smooth.

A monotypic genus native to South Africa.

Lower Taxon

• Tetrachne dregei Nees