Membrane lipid peroxidation and protective enzyme activity in leaves of low-phosphorus-tolerant rice cultivars Dalidso and Liantangzao 3, and low-phosphorus-sensitive cultivars Huzhanqi and Xinsanbaili were studied under lowphosphorus stress with sandy culture. Results indicated that low-phosphorus stress aggravated the membrane lipid peroxidation in rice leaves, and it was more severe in low-phosphorus-sensitive cultivars than that in low-phosphorus-tolerant cultivars. During the period of low-phosphorus stress, the activities of SOD, CAT and POD maintained relatively stable in low-phosphorustolerant cultivars, whereas those increased obviously at early stage and subsequently decreased rapidly in the low-phosphorus-sensitive cultivars, suggesting that the absolute activities of protective enzymes had no relation with the low-phosphorus stress, while the changing trend was reverse.