Zizania

Plant Characteristics
Habit		grass
Lifespan:	⌛	perennial, annual

Cultivation

Exposure:	☼	sun
Water:	◍	wet
Features:	✓	edible

Scientific Names
Poaceae >	Zizania >

Read about Zizania in the Standard Cyclopedia of Horticulture
Zizania (an old Greek name of some wild grain). Gramineae. Tall aquatic grasses with lush sts., long blades, and large terminal panicles of monoecious fls.: spikelets 1-fld., the pistillate upper portion of the panicle narrow and appressed, the staminate lower portion spreading; pistillate spikelets long-awned.—Species 3, 2 in N. Amer. and 1 in N. Asia. The above text is from the Standard Cyclopedia of Horticulture. It may be out of date, but still contains valuable and interesting information which can be incorporated into the remainder of the article. Click on "Collapse" in the header to hide this text.

Genus of 3 species of annual or perennial, marginal aquatic grasses. Originally from the marshland and lakeshores of E. Asia and North America. Cultivated for their linear, flat leaves which are on tall and reedy stems. Pyramidical or conical, feathery panicles of spikelets are borne from summer to autumn, followed by edible seeds which are rice-like. Plants are suitable for large ponds or wildlife pools. They can be grown in a warm greenhouse where they are not hardy.

Cultivation

Outdoors, grow at the edge of a large pool under full sun, under about 9in (23cm) of water.

Propagation

Seeds should be overwintered in trays of damp loam. Sow in early spring at 64F (18C). When seedling emerge, cover them with 2in (5cm) of water and maintain the same temperature. When all danger of frost is passed, they can be planted outdoors.

Pests and diseases

Leaf smut, ergot and fungal spots.

Species

Wild rice is any of the four species of plants that make up the genus Zizania (common names: Canada rice, Indian rice, and water oats), a group of grasses that grow in shallow water in small lakes and slow-flowing streams; often, only the flowering head of wild rice rises above the water. The genus is closely related to true rice, genus Oryza, which is also a grass, and shares the tribe Oryzeae. Three species of wild rice are native to North America:

Northern wild rice (Zizania palustris) is an annual plant native to the Great Lakes region of North America, the aquatic areas of the Boreal Forest regions of Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba. Northern wild rice is the state grain of the U.S. state of Minnesota.
Wild rice (Z. aquatica), also an annual, grows in the Saint Lawrence River and on the Atlantic and Gulf coasts of the United States.
Texas wild rice (Z. texana) is a perennial plant only found in a small area along the San Marcos River in central Texas.

One species is native to Asia:

Manchurian wild rice (Z. latifolia; incorrect synonym: Z. caduciflora), is a perennial native to China.

Texas wild rice is in danger of extinction due to loss of suitable habitat in its limited range and to pollution. The pollen of Texas wild rice can only travel about 30 inches away from a parent plant. If pollen does not land on a receptive female flower within that distance, no seeds are produced.^[1] Manchurian wild rice has almost disappeared from the wild in its native range, but has been accidentally introduced into the wild in New Zealand and is considered an invasive species there[1].

Zizania aquatica (Annual wild rice, Canadian wild rice, Water rice). Marginal aquatic annual plant with linear, grass-like leaves, deep green in color, up to 4ft (1.2m) long. Flowers are a pale green, and born upon pyramidal panicles, to 30cm (75cm) long in the summer, after which edible, rice-like seeds develop. Up to 10ft (3m) in height, 18in (45cm) in width. Native to N. America. USDA Zones 3-9
Zizania latifolia
Zizania palustris
Zizania texana