Number of seeds per kg. About 40 000. Suitability for hay and silage Practically all the paddy straw from rice crops in the tropics is conserved as hay for animal feeding and is usually stacked around poles in the house compound. Toxicity Excess feeding of rice straw leads to toxicity because of high oxalates, which will bind the calcium in the diet. There are numerous cultivars, each suited to a particular ecological niche.
Numerous diseases occur, affecting the leaves for use as straw for feeding animals.
It will not stand frosts. Maximum germination and quality required for sale 70 percent germinable seeds, 98.8 percent purity in Queensland. Pests Army-worms and grasshoppers cause major leaf damage, and stem borers affect the stalk. The hay is fairly palatable, but not nutritious enough for maintenance. Natural habitat Swampy areas.