Textarea field

Store multi-line plain text as a string.

Use field.Textarea for multi-line plain text such as a synopsis, internal note, or address. It stores a string—the line breaks are part of that string—and renders a larger text control in the admin.

In the admin

A populated Summary textarea in the Ridu admin showing a focused multi-line plain-text control.

Line breaks remain part of one string; the control does not create rich-text structure.

Add a multi-line input

content/posts.go

field.Textarea("summary").MaxLength(280)

Create and update inputs accept summary: string; optional fields may be omitted. Reads return the same plain string through REST, the Local API, and the generated SDK.

Configuration

Constructor or method	What it controls
`field.Textarea(name)`	Creates a stored multi-line plain-text string.
`.Required()`	Rejects missing, null, and empty text.
`.MinLength(n)` / `.MaxLength(n)`	Sets inclusive Unicode-character bounds.
`.Default(value)` / `.DefaultFrom(callback)`	Supplies fixed or request-aware initial text.
`.Localized()`	Stores separate text for each configured content locale.
`.Validate(callback)` / `.LiveValidate(callback)`	Adds save validation or optional feedback while editing.
`.Admin(...)`, `.Access(...)`, `.Hooks(...)`, `.AfterRead(...)`	Configures the editor, authorization, saved value, and returned value.

Set length limits and a placeholder

content/reviews.go

field.Textarea("editorNote").
  Required().
  MinLength(10).
  MaxLength(2_000).
  Admin(field.Admin{
    Placeholder: "Explain what must change before publication…",
    Sidebar:     true,
  })

Textarea fields accept the common string options: Required, MinLength, MaxLength, Default, Localized, Unique, Index, and the shared admin options. Long prose rarely needs to be unique or indexed.

Localization stores an independent string per content locale. Admin-language translations for the label, description, or placeholder are separate and do not localize content.

Search and display plain text

String filters work as they do for Text, including equality, containment, like, selection, and sorting. Long text queries are not relevance-ranked search. Use a separate search integration when your application needs ranked results or language-aware matching.

Textarea does not parse Markdown or HTML and does not sanitize it for rendering. Escape plain text in your frontend. If authors need formatting, links, uploads, or structured blocks, use the Rich-text plugin or Blocks.

Common mistakes

Do not store an object or arbitrary array in a textarea; use JSON or model the shape with fields.
MaxLength limits characters accepted by Ridu; it does not visually truncate the control.
Hiding a note in the admin is not a field access rule.

See field.Textarea and access control.