Red Dragon rice is a Southeast Asian annual grass that transforms a garden into a living water feature. Growing 18 to 30 inches tall in hardiness zones 2 through 11, this Oryza sativa variety thrives in full sun and moist to wet soils, producing delicate lime-green panicles that ripen to brown by early autumn. Unlike ornamental grasses grown purely for looks, this is a working plant, one you can actually harvest for grain while enjoying its architectural presence throughout the growing season.
Full Sun
Moderate
2-11
30in H x 30in W
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Moderate
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Red Dragon rice demands water in a way most garden plants don't, thriving when submerged in several inches of water or grown as a pond marginal where few other plants dare venture. The foliage develops its richest color in full sun, and the drooping seed heads that emerge in mid to late summer create movement and visual interest as they shift from lime green to warm brown. This is a plant that bridges the gap between ornamental gardening and food production, rewarding gardeners who give it the consistently wet conditions it craves.
Red Dragon rice is grown for its edible grain, which can be harvested when the panicles ripen to brown in early autumn. The grain develops as the drooping seed heads mature, and once fully dry, the rice can be threshed and processed into edible grain. Beyond its culinary purpose, this variety serves as a striking ornamental in rain gardens, water gardens, and pond margins where its tall, linear foliage and ripening seed heads create seasonal interest.
No timeline data available yet for this variety.
Sow rice directly into moist or wet soil in full sun. Plant in spring after the last frost date, placing seeds in garden-type soil that will be kept consistently wet or submerged. Seeds can be sown directly in ponds, rain gardens, or prepared wet beds.
Harvest rice when the drooping panicles have ripened from lime green to brown, typically by early autumn. As the seed heads ripen, the grain matures and hardens. Once the panicles are fully brown and dry, cut the seed heads and thresh them to separate the edible rice grain from the chaff. The exact timing depends on your local growing season; watch for the color shift from green to brown as your visual cue that harvest is approaching.
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“Oryza sativa, rice, originated in Southeast Asia and became one of the world's most important food crops through millennia of careful selection and cultivation. The Red Dragon cultivar represents a specific strain within this ancient species, selected and maintained by gardeners and seed companies who recognize rice's value both as a staple grain and as a distinctive garden plant. When grown ornamentally in temperate gardens, it carries forward a tradition of appreciation for this species that spans thousands of years of human agriculture.”