The second leaf has a sheath, blade, ligule, and auricles. Leaves have short, stiff hairs on their upper and lower surfaces. The mature plant has round, hollow, jointed culms, and rather flat, sessile leaf blades. The leaves have short, stiff hairs on their upper and lower leaf surfaces. The plants tiller profusely, becoming brushier than white rice plants.
Panicles are loose and open and droop slightly.
The grain shatters easily when ripe. It is an ingredient in cereals, mixes, and vitamin concentrates, and non-food grades of bran are used in livestock feeds. Rice bran oil is a high quality cooking oil extracted from rice bran. Rice flour is ground milled or brown rice. It is non-allergenic, making it valuable as a wheat substitute for those allergic to gluten and wheat flour products.