Rhizomatous perennial 12-18 inches tall with long, slender, weak, spreading stems often forming large sprawling patches. Nodes have distinctive long white hairs pointing backward toward the base of the stem (D). The alternate pale green 2-8 inch leaves feel rough when pulled through the fingers because of short, stiff hairs on their edges. Leaves at the tip of the stem point forward, often in a V or Y shape (C). Flower clusters are widely spreading panicles with sparse branches (A,E) bearing loosely overlapping boat-shaped spikelets lined up along them (F,G).
Moist upland and floodplain woods. At Fontenelle Forest, Whitegrass is common in Handsome and Mormon Hollow. It is common on woodland portions of Jonas Trail and in Raccoon Hollow at Neale Woods. This rather late maturing woodland grass flowers from July to October.
No other grass at FF/NW has the backward-pointing hairs on the nodes except for very closely related Rice Cutgrass (Leersia oryzoides), uncommon at edges of the stream and marsh at Fontenelle Forest. It is more robust with rougher leaves, larger spikelets and more branched panicles.
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