Restio inveteratus Esterh.

Vegetative parts: plants tufted or tangled, 0.3–1 m tall, basal diameter 0.02–0.1 m, crown diameter 0.3–1 m, compact, without spreading rhizomes or stolons. Fertile culms branching, smooth or finely rugulose, olivaceous, 0.3–1 m tall, diameter at base 1–3 mm, diameter at apex 0.2–0.7 mm. Sheaths closely convoluted, 8–20 mm long, brown, apical margins coriaceous, like the rest of the body, hyaline shoulders absent or membranous margins continuing behind awn, hyaline shoulder 0.01 of sheath body length, apex, excluding the membranous lobes, acute. Sheath-mucro penicellate or awl- or needleshaped, straight and erect, 1.5–4 mm long.
Males: male inflorescence with 2–5 spikelets or 6–10 spikelets or 11–20 spikelets, racemose or paniculate, 20–60 mm long, 8–15 mm wide. Male inflorescence spathes persistent, like the floral bracts, coriaceous. Male flowers in spikelets. Male spikelets erect on stiff pedicels or sessile, oblong or elliptical, apex rounded, 8–11 mm, 2.5–3.5 mm, with 5–10 flowers, pedicels absent ie spikelets sessile or shorter than the spikelets, terete or angular. Male bracts as tall as flowers or taller than flowers, 3.5–4.5 mm long, oblong, acute or apiculate, cartilaginous, bract upper margin with honeycombed cells, which eventually decay, bract awn minute or absent or less than half as long as the bract body, honeycombed apical portion pale, not dark. Male flower 3–4 mm long. Male tepals sepals more rigid than petals, cartilaginous, petals membranous, linear or oblong, inner tepals shorter than outer tepals or inner and outer tepals the same length. Male outer lateral tepals conduplicate, keel densely villous. Anthers 1.5–2 mm long, exserted from the flowers. Pistillode present.
Females: female inflorescence paniculate or racemose, 15–40 mm long, 5–10 mm wide, with 1 spikelet or 2–5 spikelets. Female spathes shorter than the spikelets, persistent, coriaceous. Female spikelet sessile or pedicel simple, elliptical or ovate, apex obtuse or acute, 10–20 mm long, with 3–12 flowers, with 3–6 sterile bracts. Female bracts shorter than flowers or as tall as flowers, 6.5–8.5 mm long, oblong, acuminate or apiculate, cartilaginous, apical margin with honeycombed cells, darker than body of bract, awn minute or absent. Female flower 5.5–7.5 mm long, without a fleshy pedicel. Female tepals cartilaginous, keels of lateral sepals densely villous or both lateral sepal keels and odd sepal villous, midrib flush with the tepal body, apices acuminate, inner and outer whorls the same length. Female outer lateral tepals conduplicate, 6–7.5 mm long. Female odd outer tepal linear or oblong, 5.5–7 mm long. Female inner tepals linear or oblong, 5–6 mm long. Staminodes present. Styles feathery, white, 3. Style bases free. Ovary with 2 locules, dehiscent.
Fruit: seed 1.5 mm long, 1.2–1.3 mm in diameter, shape in side view elliptical or oblong, shape in diameter triangular in cross section, brown, colliculate (very finely).