I took the plunge and am trying to grow a little bit of rice in my garden this year. I purchased seeds of the varieties Cocodrie, Wells, and Francis from Bountiful Gardens. I have rice growing three inches high in peat pots. I suppose my timing is right; I saw pickup truck loaded with sacks of rice seed going down the highway a few days ago. A lot of rice is grown here in Louisiana.

I found another source for seeds that I plan to order from. It's Kitazawa Seed Company in Oakland, California. They carry a lot of oriental varieties of vegetable seeds. They offer a variety of rice called Kohishihikari, which is supposed to be a Japanese rice variety. If the description is accurate, it should be suitable for making sushi and for anyone who prefers "sticky" rice. They have a web site: www.kitazawaseed.com

I also have another item that might be relevant to the issue of keeping our rice free from genetic modification (and wheat, and all other food varieties). Many of the seed varieties available on the market, even some of the open pollinated, non-hybrid varieties, are registered as proprietary property of the producer under the Seed Variety Protection Act. This law grants rights the breeder the right to control production and distribution of unique named varieties of plant seeds for 18 years that cannot otherwise be protected by patent.

This is probably what makes it so difficult for us little guys to get seed and I believe it makes it easy for producers to eliminate competition from small producers. They could also more easily introduce GM varieties to the detriment of non-GM varieties and those who would want to produce them. I wanted to see if the three varieties that I am growing could be grown for seed production and distribution. They are protected under the PVP Act and cannot. I understand though that the courts have ruled that a grower can save the seed for his own next crop without violating the rights of the seed producer, though I have not found specific documentation for that. This is an issue with many other crops. I think that those who are trying to save unique seeds need to add rice and other grains to their list of important seeds for future generations. The seed producers haven't done it for vegetables and certainly won't do it for our grain supply either.

Photo & Information provided by Ken Shumway, Louisiana gardener & friend of Amberwaves.