General:
Perennial grass from rhizomes; stems erect to decumbent, hollow, usually smooth except at the bearded nodes, the hairs directed downwards, (20) 50-100 cm tall.

Leaves:
Sheaths open, usually smooth; blades (3) 4-10 mm wide, flat, sometimes somewhat hairy; ligules finely short-hairy, strongly eroded-jagged and more or less fringed with fine hairs, 2-3 mm long.

Flowers:
Inflorescence a greyish, purplish-tinged panicle, 4-15 cm long; spikelets 2-flowered, the upper floret male, tawny, short-stalked, 5-6 mm long; glumes (4) 4.5-5.5 mm long, long-pointed, usually at least hairy on the keels; lemmas about 2.2 mm long, strongly bearded on the calluses, the lower ones unawned, the upper ones awned, the awns curved or bent, exserted, arising from somewhat above midlength; rachillas sparsely stiff-hairy or sometimes smooth, anthers about 1.7 mm long; lodicules linear-lanceolate, about 0.7 mm long.

Source:  The Illustrated Flora of British Columbia