Rice Cultivars for Cold Temperate Gardens
These rice cultivars belong to the Asian rice botanical group Oryza sativa. They set mature, viable seed in our southeast Michigan garden within our ~145 day growing season. All are grown in upland, dry, non-flooded conditions though some are classified as a lowland or paddy cultivar.
Prior to his retirement in 2023, Indiana Seedsman John Sherck was the gold standard for rice cultivars suitable for cold temperate growing conditions. Happily, Anders Jorgensen of Lost Ram Farm has joined the team of northern producers enabling short season growers to include rice in their cultivation plans. Currently he is reachable via Facebook and when his site goes live I will update the contact link.
For a useful overview of the rice plant, please see the technical bulletin The Morphology and Varietal Characteristics of the Rice Plant.
Join the growing discussions (pun intended!) in the Facebook group: Upland Rice Growing in Cold Temperate Climates.
IMPORTANT NOTE: Keep in mind, rice seed is hulled. Rice is planted in its hull but after harvest, that hull must be removed before eating. De-hulling rice is not easily achieved by hand, requiring mechanical assistance such as the Grainmaker, a Brill De-huller or an electric de-huller.
N.B.: The cultivation requirements for wild rice (Zizania spp.) is beyond our scope and abilities and as a result it is not a species we grow.
