Growing your own rice at home might seem like an

In short: Rice (Oryza sativa) can be grown at home in a bucket by a sunny window. Sow seeds on moist substrate and keep the surface wet; they germinate at room temperature in about 14 days. Transplant seedlings into a larger container with water about 2 cm above the substrate and harvest when plants turn yellow.

Try Growing Your Own Rice

Have you ever tried growing an exotic crop that you also tasted? Did you manage to grow coffee beans in a pot by the window, or tea leaves for homemade tea? Were you successful and would you like to try something new again? Then bio and organically cultivable Rice (Oryza sativa) is just for you. Rice comprises about 20 species. So it's possible to try growing varieties that differ in both shape and color.

If you're a passionate contributor to blogs and discussions about cultivation, then rice is an ideal and interesting plant for various experiments. You can clearly see the germination and growth of the plant. You can record and photograph the process and results. Growing rice will be fun for you.

Rice (lat. Oryza sativa) - belongs to the grass family (lat. Poaceae) and the rice group (lat. Oryzeae) - originates from tropical regions of Asia and Africa. It's among the oldest cultivated crops ever. The first records of rice cultivation date back to 5000 BC. Approximately twenty species of rice have been described. There are tens of thousands of cultivated varieties. The most commonly grown is Rice (Oryza sativa) - seeds available in our e-shop. This rice also has the greatest economic importance. It's cultivated as an agricultural crop, just like the species African rice (lat. Oryza glaberrima Staud) and Red rice. Other rice species are considered weedy or wild from an economic perspective.

Rice is one of the most important foods in the world. It's the staple food for 1/4 of the population. The world's largest rice exporters are: Thailand, Vietnam, and the USA.

Rice is harvested several times a year (two to three times). Especially in the most common cultivation areas with favorable conditions, such as China, Vietnam, and Bangladesh.

Growing Rice (Oryza sativa)

Rice appearance and description

Rice germinates in a moist environment. The root system is branched with one main, primary root. The branching of the root system depends on the species of rice being grown. The root system develops gradually while the crop is flowering. The roots are white in the first phase, later turning brown. Once the plant has finished flowering, the root system no longer develops.

Rice grows to a height of 0.5 - 5m. It's an annual plant. Most species grow upright. Rice (Oryza sativa) grows in clumps. The rice plant itself consists of hollow stems that grow from tillering nodes. Several additional tillers branch from the nodes. Some tillers are sterile - non-productive. The stems have a bright green color. As the rice matures, they turn yellow.

Rice blooms in spikes. Small flowers are arranged in panicles. A panicle contains 40-500 small single-flowered spikelets. Cultivated rice has panicles containing single-flowered spikelets with 6 stamens.

The fruit of rice is a 5-14 mm long grain. The grain contains 70-80% starch. The average yield of cultivated rice is 3-5 tons/ha.

Growing

Growing rice is very simple, although you might associate cultivation from documentary films where in Asia it's planted in wellington boots, one plant after another in a flooded field. Home cultivation isn't that romantic. But feel free to put on your wellies.

Prepare a seed tray with regular substrate (it can contain peat), which you moisten well with a spray bottle. Place the cultivated rice seeds on the surface of the substrate. Moisten with a spray bottle. Keep the surface constantly moist. Seeds will germinate at room temperature in approximately 14 days.

Recommendation: Place the tray with seeds on the south side of your home. On a windowsill where there will be the longest period of sunlight. Rice needs plenty of light for germination.

Rice grows regularly during germination. Once the seedlings emerge, you need to start watering them more. Cultivated rice was originally a terrestrial plant that evolved into a semi-aquatic plant. It thrives in warm, standing water.

Emerged plants should be transplanted into a bucket or other larger container. Place expanded clay and substrate at the bottom. Gently press the plants into the substrate. Water thoroughly. The water level should be approximately 2 cm above the substrate level.

Rice harvest should be done once it turns yellow, taking on a waxy appearance. In rice fields, plants are usually harvested manually. Then they are left to dry and threshers separate the seeds from the stems. Threshed seeds must be left to dry.

About Rice

Rice is among the world's most important crops. It contains proteins (8-10%), fats, carbohydrates, fiber, minerals and vitamins B1, B2, B3.

Rice is used to produce alcoholic beverages (through fermentation) - arrack, rice beer and wine. Rice straw is used to make cigarette paper.

Rice consumption is recommended for diets. For treating nausea. It's part of rational nutrition. Suitable for athletes. Prolonged chewing releases important carbohydrates from rice.

Rice is part of the everyday diet around the world. It is a component of both Czech and international cuisine. Most commonly, it serves as a side dish to Asian cuisine, whether Chinese, Thai, Japanese, and others. If you enjoy tasting new dishes and preparing them yourself, try making sushi. Another excellent dish based on deliciously prepared rice is, for example, Spanish paella.

TIP: If you're not confident about experimenting and prefer to stick to dishes you usually cook, then try replacing your regularly prepared rice in cooking bags with jasmine rice, long-grain rice, brown rice, or perhaps the nutty-scented Basmati rice. There are many types of rice to try.

The taste of rice is influenced by the region where it is grown. It depends on the climate, sunlight, soil, and water. Who knows how rice grown at home will taste...

For cultivation, try cultivated rice

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Author: Hana Michalíková