Know The Difference Between Straw And Hay

Is straw and hay the same thing? This is a question that gets asked a lot by people who are not knowledgeable about it. The answer is simple: No, they are not the same thing and they have a few points of distinction, which will be mentioned in this post. It will help you understand exactly what they are and what their uses are.

A bale of straw and a bale of hay may look very similar to each other, but the fact of the matter is that they are not. They may be even found in the same place and at the same shops, but they are different from each other. The easiest way to distinguish between them is one is food and one is not.

Food And Non-Food

The main difference between straw and hay is that while straw is used for non-food purposes, hay is used as food for cattle and other animals. There are also some other differences between them though this is the main one.

What Is Straw?

Straw is a by-product. After cereals such as rye, barley and wheat get harvested and the seed heads get taken out, what remains are the hollow stems. These hollow stems are called straw and they are used to make bales. These bales look like bales of hay and they are rectangular.

The most important to know about straws may be that they are for non-food purposes they are used for. They are great for insulation and are often used for the purpose. For many centuries, bales of straw have been effectively used in cattle farms and used as bedding material for cattle. This way they get warm bedding during the colder seasons of the months

Another way that straw is utilized in today’s times is to be spread on the ground. They are used for mulching purposes for vegetable gardens in many homes throughout the country. They are also used as covering for the lawn seeds.

Straw has many more uses other than the ones mentioned above. But they are not used as food courses for cattle and animals because they don’t have any nutrition in them.

What Is Hay?

Hay is usually a tall field grass by the name of Timothy. When it gets matured, they are cut to the ground level. This way the whole plant including the seed heads, leaf blades, and stalks are left so that they can dry off in the summer sun. When they get dry, they are collected in bales. They are used to feed animals. Not just cattle get fed with them but they are also used to feed wild animals at the zoo.

Understanding The Difference

Whether or not is straw and hay the same thing is a question that arises quite a few times. Now that you know the difference, it is important to use them in the ways they are meant for. While both of them have their uses, they are different from each other.