dhanya :

Morphology:

Root fibrous, thin, cylindrical, 5-15 cm in length and 0.05-0.1 cm thick with a few rootlets, soft, smooth; creamish-brown to greyish-brown.

A grass which can grow to over 1 m tall, or to 5 m long in deep water.

Stem and leaves: The stem is upright and composed of a series of joint-like nodes, with a leaf growing from each node.

Seeds: The seeds (or grain) grow on branch-like spikes which arch over. The grain is the most economically important part of the rice plant, and its endosperm is the final product consumed.

Histology:

Root – Shows single layered epidermis consisting of thin-walled, rectangular cells with a few unicellular root hairs; exodermis 1-2 layered, composed of thick-walled, sclerenchymatous cells; cortex differentiated into three zones; outer 5-8 and inner 2-3 layered, both consisting of round to oval, parenchymatous cells with intercellular spaces; middle zone consisting of radially elongated, parenchymatous cells having very large air-spaces; endodermis and pericycle both single layered; xylem and phloem form equal number of bundles arranged alternately with each other; centre occupied by a small pith composed of polygonal, thick-walled, sclerenchymatous cells.

powder- Greyish-cream; shows groups of sclerenchymatous cells, pitted vessels and prismatic crystals of calcium oxalate.