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Zizania aquatica - L.

Wild Rice

Author	L.	Botanical references	43, 200
Family	Gramineae	Genus	Zizania
Synonyms
Known Hazards	None known
Range	Eastern N. America - New Brunswick to Manitoba, south to Florida and Texas.
Habitat	Shallow waters of rivers and lakes, preferring a slow moving current[20, 43].
Edibility Rating	5 (1-5)	Medicinal Rating	0 (1-5)

Physical Characteristics

Annual growing to 3.5m by 0.2m at a fast rate.

The plant prefers light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils. The plant prefers acid, neutral and basic (alkaline) soils. It cannot grow in the shade. It can grow in water.

Habitats

Pond;

Edible Uses

Edible Parts: Seed; Stem.

Seed - cooked[257]. It can be used as a cereal. A staple food of the native North American Indians[95, 159], the long black delicious grain is eaten as an expensive gourmet meal[183]. It is used in the same ways that rice is used and is sometimes added to rice dishes to impart its subtle flavour. The seed can also be ground into a meal and used in making bread, thickening soups etc[183]. It is a very rich source of riboflavin and is also rich in niacin[160]. The base of the culms is used as a vegetable[74].

Medicinal Uses

Plants For A Future can not take any responsibility for any adverse effects from the use of plants. Always seek advice from a professional before using a plant medicinally.

None known

Other Uses

None known

Cultivation details

Easily grown in water up to 60cm deep, it tolerates water up to 1 metre deep though it prefers growing in water 10 - 20cm deep[136]. It dislikes stagnant water[20]. A very ornamental plant[1], it grows, flowers and fruits well in the lake and lily pond at Kew[136]. Plants can self-sow in Britain, but the seed tends to germinate too late to mature a fresh crop of seed in this country, so the plant gradually dies out[136]. It would possibly maintain itself in areas such as the Isle of Wight, Cambridgeshire and Norfolk[136]. It is a very hardy plant, the seed survives being frozen in ice[136]. Plants grown at a 30cm square spacing can produce 20 or more flowering shoots[136]. Often collected from the wild, this plant is now being cultivated commercially for its edible seed[183]. It is considered a gourmet's delicacy and is sold in many parts of the world, usually in health food shops and usually at a very high price[136]. Plants require protection from wild fowl otherwise they will devour the young growth[136]. Plants are occasionally sown by lakes and rivers in Europe to attract wild fowl[50].

Propagation

Seed - it must not be allowed to dry out or it will quickly lose its viability, usually within 4 weeks[136]. Store collected seed in jars of water in a cool place such as the salad compartment of a fridge. Sow the seed in spring. Immerse the pots so that they are covered by about 5cm of water. It is best to sow 2 seeds per 7cm pot in a greenhouse in order to get early germination and a better chance of a crop[136]. Pot on as required and plant out about 30cm square in May, by which time the plants should be 20 - 30cm tall[136]. Larger quantities can be sown in shallow boxes and plunged into the pond etc in May.

Links

This plant is also mentioned in the following PFAF articles: The Edible Pond and Bog Garden.

References

[1] F. Chittendon. RHS Dictionary of Plants plus Supplement. 1956 Oxford University Press 1951
Comprehensive listing of species and how to grow them. Somewhat outdated, it has been replaces in 1992 by a new dictionary (see [200]).

[20] Riotte. L. Companion Planting for Successful Gardening. Garden Way, Vermont, USA. 1978 ISBN 0-88266-064-0
Fairly good.

[43] Fernald. M. L. Gray's Manual of Botany. American Book Co. 1950
A bit dated but good and concise flora of the eastern part of N. America.

[50] ? Flora Europaea Cambridge University Press 1964
An immense work in 6 volumes (including the index). The standard reference flora for europe, it is very terse though and with very little extra information. Not for the casual reader.

[74] Komarov. V. L. Flora of the USSR. Israel Program for Scientific Translation 1968
An immense (25 or more large volumes) and not yet completed translation of the Russian flora. Full of information on plant uses and habitats but heavy going for casual readers.

[95] Saunders. C. F. Edible and Useful Wild Plants of the United States and Canada. Dover Publications 1976 ISBN 0-486-23310-3
Useful wild plants of America. A pocket guide.

[136] Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Kew Bulletin. 1909 Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. 1909
An interesting article on growing wild rice, Zizania aquatica and Z. latifolia.

[159] McPherson. A. and S. Wild Food Plants of Indiana. Indiana University Press 1977 ISBN 0-253-28925-4
A nice pocket guide to this region of America.

[160] Natural Food Institute, Wonder Crops. 1987. 0
Fascinating reading, this is an annual publication. Some reports do seem somewhat exaggerated though.

[183] Facciola. S. Cornucopia - A Source Book of Edible Plants. Kampong Publications 1990 ISBN 0-9628087-0-9
Excellent. Contains a very wide range of conventional and unconventional food plants (including tropical) and where they can be obtained (mainly N. American nurseries but also research institutes and a lot of other nurseries from around the world.

[200] Huxley. A. The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. MacMillan Press 1992 ISBN 0-333-47494-5
Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.

[257] Moerman. D. Native American Ethnobotany Timber Press. Oregon. 1998 ISBN 0-88192-453-9
Very comprehensive but terse guide to the native uses of plants. Excellent bibliography, fully referenced to each plant, giving a pathway to further information. Not for the casual reader.

Readers Comments

Plants for a Future does not verify the accuracy of reader comments, use at your own risk. In particular Plants For A Future can not take any responsibility for any adverse effects from the use of plants. You should always consult a professional before using plants medicinally.

Zizania aquatica

amy lightfoot Mon Nov 21 2005

interesting website. We are interested in obtaining seed to grow wild rice in Europe. WIld rice, not gene modified. We believe we have the perfect place to do it and it is only for our own personal use, not for sale, no big volume.

The Edible Pond and Bog Garden

Fred Hickerson Fri Apr 14 2006

blue creek aquatic plants- lowndesboro Alabama 205-755-4288 doremus wholesale nursery -warren texas 409-547-3536 Louisana Growers amite, la - 866-7470510 really enjoyed your site tkx end fth

american Growers assn

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