Decoding Hay and Straw An In-Depth Comparison

Hay is greenish, dried grass. Straw is what's left over once grain is harvested. One has plenty of nutrients, one doesn't. There in lies the ... Hay is grass with the inclusion of naturally sown plants which have been cut and allowed to dry in the field. As grass is soft the hay is ... Hay is usually harvested right as a plant begins to grow leaves. On the other hand, straw is made after a crop like wheat has already fully grown and the stem ... The fundamental difference between hay and haylage is the way that the grass is conserved. Haylage tends to be cut earlier in the season than hay and then is ... In composting terms, hay is "green" (rich in nutrients such as nitrogen) whereas straw is brown (mostly cellulose, that is carbon, dry and full ... "Hay" typically refers to cut alfalfa, but can also refer to other types of cut and dried grasses. Hay is usually harvested in the late summer. Remember earlier we talked about the makeup of both straw and hay? Straw is basically the stem of the plant only whereas hay has the plant, the flower, the seed ... Hay is food for plant-eating animals. Straw is used for non-food purposes. They have other differences. Straw is a stalk, usually a waste product of wheat, that's used as bedding for barnyard animals. Hay—typically alfalfa or a grass—is used as ... Hay and straw are commonly confused especially when both are dried and baled. We will cover some of the fundamental differences of straw and ...