Rice

Oryza sativa

Rice is a small, round grain that grows in water. It is a staple food for many people around the world!

Habitat: Wet fields and paddies

Appearance

The Rice plant has slender, grass-like leaves and hollow stems. Its small, inconspicuous flowers cluster on a branched stalk, developing into the familiar grains. When ripe, the fields turn a beautiful golden color.

KingdomPlantaePhylumTracheophytaClassLiliopsidaOrderPoalesFamilyPoaceaeGenusOryza

Rice

Interesting facts

Each tiny rice grain you eat is actually a type of fruit!

Rice is a staple food for over half of all the people on Earth!

Some types of rice can grow over 20 feet tall to escape deep floods!

The oldest cultivated rice grains found are over 9,000 years old!

Special abilities

Rice can grow in flooded fields because its stems have air channels, helping it breathe underwater.

Rice has many tiny flowers that develop into numerous grains, allowing it to produce a large food harvest.

Rice can pollinate itself, ensuring it produces seeds and a crop even without help from insects or wind.

Measurements & details

Height: 60-180 cm
Spread: 15-30 cm
Flower Size: 0.2-0.3 cm
Bloom Season: Summer to fall
Edible: Yes
Toxicity: None
Lifecycle: Annual
Pollination Method: Self

Ecological connections

eats

brown planthopper

Nilaparvata lugens

Feeds on rice plant sap

eats

wild boar

Sus scrofa

Consumes rice plants and grains

eats

red-billed quelea

Quelea quelea

Flocks consume large amounts of grains

symbiotic with

water fern

Azolla filiculoides

Fixes nitrogen in paddy water

Traits

Grain Crop

This human use trait denotes species cultivated as grain crops, harvested for their edible dry seeds (grains), which are a staple food source.

Agricultural

This human use trait describes species cultivated or domesticated by humans for agricultural purposes, including crops and livestock.

Edible

Edible plants are those parts of a plant that are considered safe for human consumption.

Wetland

This habitat trait identifies species found in wetlands, which are areas of land saturated with water, either permanently or seasonally, including marshes, swamps, and bogs.