Perennials; culms solid, prostrate branching into numerous short erect flowering culms. Leaf blade
small, expanded, Inflorescence a solitary, terminal, shortly pedicelate, short, spike-like secund raceme,
before anthesis wrapped-up in uppermost leaf, consisting of very short sheath and spathaceous blade;
rachis broad, convex, on hollow side with row of spikelets, lower 1-2 bisexual, upper 2-6 staminate.
Bisexual spikelet 2-flowered, persistent; lower glume adaxial, minute, hyaline or 0; upper glume and
lower lemma ca. equal, ovate-oblong, obtuse, thinly membranaceous, soft-hairy; lower palea membranaceous,
2-veined, often slitting deeply; lodicules 2, minute; stamens 3; upper palea and lemma thinly
chartaceous, glabrous with hairy apex; upper lemma ovate-oblong, margins inrolled, 5-veined; upper
palea 2-veined; lodicules and stamens like in lower floret; styles 2, free; stigma plumose, protruding
apically. Staminate spikelets 2-flowered, articulate with knob shaped pedicel, soon deciduous after
anthesis; lower glume adaxial, absent or minute and hyaline; upper glume and lower lemma ca. equal,
oblong, obtuse, soft-hairy; lower palea thinly membranaceous, 2-veined, often deeply slit; stamens 3;
upper palea oblong with broadly inflexed margins, soft-hairy at apex.
Two species, Madagascar to China and Polynesia. One species in Taiwan.
