Perennials with membranous ligule. Inflorescence a terminal group of numerous racemes borne on a short common axis; rhachis internodes columnar to inflated.
Sessile spikelet: callus truncate, flat or with a central peg; lower glume smooth or muricate, keel winged or not; lower floret male or barren; upper lemma entire and awnless.
Pedicellate spikelet usually resembling the sessile spikelet but smaller, occasionally vestigial. Worldwide: 9 species in the subtropics and tropics of the Old World, extending northwards to the Mediterranean region. Malawi: 2 taxa. |