Elytrigia pycnantha (Godr.) Á.Löve

Bluish grey, tufted, rigid perennial, 35–125 cm, sometimes forming large patches from strongly spreading wiry rhizomes. Leaf-sheath glabrous, subcoriaceous, greyish to light brown, auricles 0.5–1–(1.5) mm, submembranous sometimes long hairy. Ligule c. 0.5 mm, scarious. Collar finely hairy. Leaf-blade 5–20 cm, usually tightly inrolled, sometimes flat and up to 7 mm wide, stiff, abaxially smooth, adaxially with prominent close-set scabrid ribs, tip acute, hard, margins scabrid. Culm 25–75 cm, erect, or geniculate below, internodes glabrous. Spike 5–20 × 0.5–1–(2) cm, erect, with spikelets very close-set, but 1–2 lowermost more distant; rachis with a few prickle-teeth on margins. Spikelets 10–20 mm, pale green, oblong or elliptic-oblong, 3–10-flowered, > internodes. Glumes ± equal, disarticulating, 7–12 mm, 5–7-nerved, lanceolate-oblong, obtuse or acute, coriaceous and very tough, scabrid on mid-nerve almost throughout or near tip. Lemma 7.5–11 mm, 5-nerved, coriaceous, lanceolate-oblong, keeled above, smooth apart from a few prickle-teeth on keel near tip, obtuse to subacute, often mucronate, rarely with fine straight awn to 7 mm. Palea ≤ lemma, keels finely, closely ciliate-scabrid, glabrous elsewhere except adaxially hairy apex. Callus c. 0.3 mm, glabrous. Rachilla to 1.5 mm, shortly stiff hairy. Lodicules 1.5 mm, triangular, shortly ciliate. Anthers 5–6 mm. Gynoecium: ovary 0.7–1.0 mm; stigma-styles 2.5–3 mm. Caryopsis 4–6 mm; embryo 0.5 mm.

[From:  Edgar and Connor (2000) Flora of New Zealand. Volume 5 (second printing).]