Abstract
The purpose of this study was to discuss the practical usefulness of the discrimination of indica and japonica cultivar groups based on the morphology of silica bodies from motor cells in rice (Oryza sativa L.) . The effects of nitrogen levels on the morphology of silica bodies from the flag leaf were investigated. Two indica varieties, "T-153" and "T-160" and a japonica variety, "T-708" were used and cultivated in pot scale (1 / 5000a). Nitrogen treatment was divided into three levels of 20 gm-2, 10 gm-2, and 5 gm-2 and they were applied when the rice plants had 1.5-2.0 in remaining plant age in number of leaves (corresponding to 15 to 20 days before heading). The result showed little effect of nitrogen level on the morphology of silica bodies. No effect of nitrogen level was observed on the discrimination of indica and japonica cultivar groups based on the morphological characters of silica bodies, although the discriminating scores were slightly changed.
