Puccinellia distans (Jacq.) Parl.

Perennial, erect or prostrate tufts, 8–80 cm; branching intravaginal. Leaf-sheath glabrous, firmly membranous, light brown, sometimes purplish near base. Ligule 1–1.5–(2) mm, entire and rounded, rarely tapered and subacute. Leaf-blade 3–6.5–(12) × 1–3 mm, flat, or folded with inrolled margins, abaxially glabrous, adaxially shallowly ribbed, ribs scabrid; margins sparsely scabrid, tip scabrid, acute or hooded. Culm (5)–10–60 cm, enclosed by uppermost leaf-sheath at flowering, later visible, internodes glabrous. Panicle (3)–10–24 × 2–18 cm, ovate to ± triangular, very lax and open; branches finely scabrid, naked below, later spreading to deflexed. Spikelets 3–6 mm, 3–7-flowered, greenish or purplish. Glumes ± unequal, minutely scabrid at obtuse apex; lower 0.7–1.2 mm, 1-nerved, elliptic-lanceolate, upper 1.1–1.8 mm, 3-nerved, ovate. Lemma 1.5–2.4 mm, indistinctly 5-nerved, with short hairs at base and on nerves near base, broad-elliptic or ovate, ± membranous with nerves not reaching wide hyaline upper margin; apex minutely ciliate, broadly obtuse to almost truncate. Palea ≈ lemma, keels ciliate-scabrid in upper ⅔, apex shortly bifid. Rachilla 0.6–0.8 mm. Anthers 0.6–1 mm. Caryopsis 1–1.7 × 0.3–0.6 mm.

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