Andropogon crinitus Thunberg in Murray, Syst. Veg., ed. 14, 903. 1784; A. monandrus Roxburgh; Homoplitis crinita (Thunberg) Trinius; Ischaemum crinitum (Thunberg) Trinius; Pogonatherum saccharoideum P. Beauvois var. crinitum (Thunberg) F. N. Williams; P. saccharoideum var. monandrum (Roxburgh) Hackel.

Culms erect or geniculate, sometimes trailing, very slender, 10–30 cm tall, 0.5–0.8 mm in diam., branching from near base. Leaf sheaths glabrous or puberulous, mouth long ciliate; leaf blades 1.5–5 × 0.1–0.4 cm, scaberulous-puberulous, apex acute. Raceme 1.5–3 cm (excluding awns), yellowish; rachis internodes and pedicels 1/3–2/3 spikelet length, hairs silky white. Sessile spikelet 1.3–2 mm, membranous; callus hairs equal to or slightly longer than spikelet; lower glume scabrid on back, apex ciliate with ca. 0.2 mm hairs; upper glume awn 1.5–1.8 cm; lower floret absent or only lemma present; awn of upper lemma 1.8–2.4 cm, strongly geniculate near base, column very short, dark brown, limb fine, diverging at right angle or more from spikelet. Stamen 1, anther ca. 1 mm. Pedicelled spikelet similar to sessile but smaller; lower glume awnless. Fl. and fr. May–Sep.

This is a more delicate species than Pogonatherum paniceum, forming a uniform tuft lacking dense bunches of branchlets, with tiny spikelets and strongly bent lemma awns.

This species is used medicinally.

Mountain slopes, forests, moist places along roadsides and streams; below 2000 m. Anhui, Fujian, Guangdong, Guangxi, Guizhou, Hainan, Hubei, Hunan, Jiangxi, Sichuan, Taiwan, Yunnan, Zhejiang [Bhutan, India, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Nepal, New Guinea, Pakistan, Philippines, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Vietnam; Australia (Queensland)].