Tufted, perennial grass up to 1.2 m tall when flowering spike is present. Leaves are generally hairless with leaf blades varying from flat to inrolled depending on available moisture.
The flower-head is initially dense but can open up as seed maturity progresses.
Each seed is a deep, dark brown at maturity and lightly covered with golden hairs. The seeds appendage is known as an awn and in this case is bent twice along its length. The awn is temperature and moisture sensitive and twists around which assists the seed in making good soil contact.
This is one of the most common spear grasses along our coast and is found at the rear of dunes but also on more developed ground including coastal cliff tops.