Most people are familiar with the role of rice in cooking around the world. Rice is a grain that has thousands of varieties. White rice, long grain rice, and brown rice are sold at every grocery store. But mass-produced varieties contain pesticides that can be harmful to eat, and some organically grown brown rice can be expensive at the store.
Grains are harvested from the fields, collected, and then steamed into delicious dishes. White rice is a staple in many countries. It is believed to have been first bred in China along the Yangtze River.
Features of Rice
Rice has several life stages. Development of rice seed and early seed blade consists of the germination stage.
Later in the vegetative stage, tillers or main stems are produced in a process called tillering. A mature rice plant has three to twelve tillers. Rice plants in poor quality areas produce more tillers, but the panicles mature unevenly. Rice changes from green to gold throughout its life. The flowers are clustered together at the tips of the peduncles.
Depending on the species, the colors of the flowers vary greatly. After the rice flowers open and wither, the seed heads (or panicles) emerge and cover the tillers. You can consider growing rice crops for food, even ornamental varieties. Some of my favorite rices, like black rice, are considered ornamental. When you’re looking for rice seeds, choose one that best suits your needs. Since there are so many different varieties of rice, you’ll need a good game plan to maximize production.
Farming
Before looking for rice seeds to grow at home, consider the basic types of rice. Long-grain rice has less starch and is drier than short-grain rice, making it useful in pilaf or Indian cooking. Small-grain rice is better for recipes that require sticky grains, such as sushi. Some varieties of rice, such as brown rice, have both long and short varieties.
Lowland rice
When you think of rice-growing people, these varieties are what you probably picture: long stretches of terraced rice in the rich tropics. Lowland rice, sometimes called paddy rice, enjoys warm climates and is usually flooded with two inches of water to prevent weeds.
‘Koshikari’ is a bottom used for sushi. This particular breed originates from the old Koshi province of Japan. It prefers marshy wetlands or rice paddies for cultivation. If you live in a tropical region, ‘Koshikari’ seeds can be a good choice if you want to grow rice indoors. You can grow organically grown crops without flooding your backyard. Try planting them in five-gallon buckets with no drainage.
Highland Rice
Hill or upland rice grows well on mountains and steep hills and does not require flooding for cultivation. Although high quality rice seeds can germinate in drought, they will produce much more with adequate water.
‘Duborskian’ rice is a short grain highland variety that many gardeners like to grow. It originates in Russia and appreciates a dry climate. ‘Duborskian’ prefers moist soil and about ten inches between tiller groups. Panicles of this type are green to gold as they grow. Some ‘Duborskian’ grains are light brown.
Long grain rice
The most common type of rice is long grain. This is the typical elongated oval shape of rice found in stores around the world, while the smaller grains are round and not as popular.
A popular long-grain rice with origins in Mayan cultures is ‘Blue bonnet’ rice, cultivated for subsistence in the mountains of Belize. Mennonites brought the seeds back to America for distribution. ‘Bluebonnet’ grows well in regular garden soil.
Another popular long grain variety is ‘Carolina Gold’ which prefers flooded areas. Successful growers of these seeds recommend using kiddie pools.
Ornamental rice
‘Black Madras’ rice is great for gardeners who want to try growing a grain but don’t necessarily need high yields.
These ornamentals attract waterfowl to the growing area, which can support your local ecosystem, as well as provide a small crop. ‘Black Madras’ lives in wetlands and has beautiful purple blades that form black panicles.
Planting
The growing period of rice is long and the harvest season is about four weeks. Most species prefer warm weather. For this reason, plant rice in early spring or sometime in March, after the last frost has passed. Find a warm sunny spot in an area with well-drained soil. Or place a container in a spot in the garden that meets these needs.
Rice cultivation is started indoors or from seed by transplants. Start seeds indoors about six to eight weeks before your planting date. Once the plants are ready to be transplanted,
You can also grow rice in containers instead of a garden bed. The above varieties appreciate large planters with consistently moist soil. Lowland varieties do well in five-gallon buckets with soil on the bottom and water standing on top. No drainage is required. Try starting rice seeds directly indoors in your container and putting them outside when they are ready.
How to grow?
With at least two to four inches of standing water per week, growing rice and caring for the grain is much easier. Here are the basics.
Light
Rice plants need at least six to eight hours of sun per day. Less than six hours will be harmful and will not provide a good crop of grain. Choose a sunny location for planting. Along with water, one of the basic requirements of rice planting is adequate light. Get these two right and your plant will thrive.
Water
Rice plants enjoy wet feet and prefer moisture at their base. Lowland varieties need regular flooding for plants at least six inches tall, or a water level of at least two inches above the ground. Two to six inches of flooding helps provide moisture to rice plants and control weeds.
A tall crop needs at least an inch of water to soak the soil each week. If you irrigate the aboveground rice with a drip line, you will get the most out of your yield. Drip irrigation provides high yields, consistent water and high levels of soil nutrients. If it rains continuously, your rice plants will not need to be watered.
Soil
Rice grows in a wide variety of soils, making it one of the most widely cultivated crops in the world. In the lowlands, it enjoys fertile growing media but can grow in loamy soils with good flooding. In hilly areas, amend with well-rotted manure before planting. Upland varieties still thrive in poor soils with proper irrigation.
They tolerate a wide pH range between 3.5 to 8.5. Lowland varieties need a slightly more acidic pH, while upland varieties need a more neutral pH.
Temperature
Lowland varieties prefer zones 9a to 10b, but upland varieties can be grown down to zone 4a. Lowland varieties require a longer growing season, and upland rice can produce in less time. The ideal temperature range for tall varieties is 55°F to 80°F (13-27°C). Lowland varieties handle cooler climates of 50°F (10°C) and above. At 85°F (29°C), unstable lowland rice struggles to survive.
Both varieties are sensitive to frost, and upland rice does not do well in excessive heat. Use frost cloth to protect plants from frost damage. For hot lowland rice horticulture, shade cloth helps protect the cotyledons, but should not be necessary.
Fertilize
Since rice is a cereal in the grass family, it thrives on nitrogen. Ammonia-based nitrogen is best for growing rice, so options like urea or urine are viable. But don’t neglect potassium or phosphorus in soil preparation before planting. Add an additional potassium and phosphorus top dressing as the plants begin to sprout, and another ammonium-based nitrogen top dressing as panicles begin to form.
If you are growing a lowland variety, allow your soil to dry out for ten days before you apply your ammonia nitrogen top dressing and then water after application. This ensures that you can add some of the urea or other ammonia nitrogen to the soil surface to slow the rate of nitrogen oxidizing once diluted.
Maintenance
It is not necessary to prune this weedy plant until it is time to trim the seeds for harvest. Cutting off dead leaves is detrimental to the growth cycle. Once you’ve trimmed the grain, remove the leaves that are left behind. Each plant produces an annual crop.
Propagation
Rice is grown from unprocessed, intact seeds. Sow the seeds in your pre-planting area in the spring after the last frost to have something to harvest again in the fall. Cover the scattered seeds with compost, and top up if necessary. If you are doing container gardening, fill your bucket with four inches of soil that has been amended with compost. Then sow the seeds. Move the plants outside or, once established, move your container to a sunny location.
Harvest
Harvesting rice is a laborious process but can be done at home. You’ll know it’s ready to harvest when the arching panicles change color from green to gold. Take a small sickle and cut the stalk close to the ground level. Then collect them and place them on an airtight paper in a warm dry place to dry for two weeks. If you have a large crop, place the grains in a single layer between two tarps and trample them to remove the husks from the panicles. Alternatively, try making small cuts on the counter between two sheets of parchment paper or in a plastic bag.
Right after harvesting, you will have brown rice. The white version is polished to remove most of the brown outer seed coating that is left behind after shaking.
Storage
Start the process by choosing only healthy grains during harvest. This prevents malfunction. Store cereal in an airtight container. A mason jar or airtight container works here. These grains keep for the same amount of time as store-bought rice.
Common problems
Although this plant is hardy, many problems do not present themselves until harvest time. If you’re growing a lowland variety, check your garden or buckets daily for downy mildew.
Irregular growth
Rice with uneven water levels grows irregular panicles. Therefore, starting in buckets may be better than trying in-ground methods. Rice growers recommend two inches of standing water.
Fluctuating temperature
Gardening when too hot or too cold can also affect seed production. If it’s too hot, cover the rice stalks with a shade cloth or provide extra moisture. If snap-freeze, cover them with a frost cloth. Also, rice will do well in almost any setting.
Insects
Termites and rice water weeds feed on the roots of rice plants. If they have their way, rice stalks can lose their ability to produce fruit, making your harvest a disappointment. Pyrethrins are effective against both, although termites may be more difficult to control.
Fall armyworms and rice stem borers are both larval forms of the moth. They respond well to treatment with Bacillus thuringiensis, but can also be treated with pyrethrins or spinosad.
Some leafhoppers can also be a problem, but insecticidal soaps or pyrethrins will also effectively control them. Grasshoppers can also be opportunistic pests on your canes, but Bt is effective against most species. Raising ducks with lowland rice is a cultural method of pest control. Ducks find food crops for insects and hunt them to survive. Fish also feed on insects in flooded rice.
Diseases
Some fungal diseases and blights can be a problem when growing rice. These are some common diseases and how to control or get rid of them.
Rice Blast
Rice blast, caused by a fungus called Pyricularia gracia, prefers warm, wet weather. It causes rotting between the stalk nodes in its first stage. As it grows, it makes its way up the panicle.
Treat rice blast with a copper fungicide. Spray plants on the ground or in buckets in the morning or evening when it’s not too hot. Repeat as directed.
Straighthead disease
Straight head disease occurs when the panicles do not produce proper fruiting and maintain an upright shape when rice is planted year after year in a floodplain. In this case, the water is full of arsenic.
Rotate crops in and out of the area frequently to avoid upright head disease. In extreme cases let the water level in your paddy dry and then refill it next year. Keep your rice pot or bucket clean between rice plants. Refill only when it is time for the rice seeds to grow again.
False Smut
Ustilaginoidea virens is a fungus that causes false smut. False smut colonizes rice growers through small lesions in stalks. The mycelium damages the tissue that connects the small balls that must be removed. After removing them, treat the plants with a copper fungicide.
Kernal Smut
Kernel smut is another fungus caused by a cocktail of resting spores called chlamydospores. They cause irregular panicle formation that gives color to the grains. Treat colon summit culturally as early detection is not possible.
