Stems mostly 2-5 m tall and 2-3 cm thick and yellowish or pale green. Internodes at the base of the stems are characteristically very short, irregular in degree of swelling, and often with an oblique node angle (cf. P. nigra): there is a groove or flattening of the stem face on the side of the branches. Basal sheaths with pale mottles and streaks. Leaves 5-15 cm long, 1-2 cm wide, pale green, generally with at least a few hairs, the lower surface nerves in a brick mosaic.
South-eastern China
Forms with variegated leaves and yellow to orange stems are occasionally sold.
Plants can become established from old abandoned gardens, or from dumped rhizomes.
Source: (2005). Poaceae. In: . Horticultural Flora of South-eastern Australia. Volume 5. Flowering plants. Monocotyledons. The identification of garden and cultivated plants. University of New South Wales Press.
