Deepwater rice are varieties of rice (Oryza sativa) grown in flooded conditions with water more than 50 cm (20 in) deep for at least a month.[1] More than 100 million people in Southeast Asia including Northeastern India rely on deepwater rice for their sustenance.[2] Two adaptations permit the rice to thrive in deeper water, floating rice and traditional talls. Traditional talls are varieties that are grown at water depths between 50 and 100 cm (20 and 39 in) and have developed to be taller and have longer leaves than standard rice. Floating rice grows in water deeper than 100 cm through advanced elongation ability. This means when a field where rice is growing floods, accelerated growth in the internodal of the stem allows the plant to keep some of its foliage on top of the water. The O. s. indica cultivar is the main type of deepwater rice, although varieties of O. s. japonica have been found in Burma and Assam Plains.[3][4]
- ^ Catling, p. 2.
- ^ Bhuiyan, Sadiq I. (2004). Rice research and development in the flood-prone ecosystem. International Rice Research Institute. p. v. ISBN 978-971-22-0197-4.
- ^ Hans, Kende; Esther van der Knaap; Hyung-Taeg Cho (1998). "Deepwater Rice: A Model Plant to Study Stem Elongation". Michigan State University-Department of Energy Plant Research Laboratory. Archived from the original on 27 July 2003. Retrieved 3 March 2011.
- ^ Catling, p. 110.