The
above video shows the mowing of the hay which is called "alfalfa, or
clover". It is a prime source of nutrition for cows and horses during
winter. The scent of fresh cut alfalfa is delightful.
Here is the difference:
This is hay. Horses and cows love this. Photo below:
Hay is off in the distance. This is straw. This is great for putting into a stall. Then it has to be "mucked out". Messy job. This
is what remains after different grains, such as wheat, rye, etc. have
been harvested. Straw---it is unpleasant to walk upon, and is used for
animal bedding. Not for consumption.
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And now we know the difference. Thanks, Susan, and make hay while the sun shines!
ReplyDeleteAbsolutely.
DeleteI am smelling it in my imagination right now. It's a delightful (if slightly dusty) smell.
ReplyDeleteIt is a rich dusty smell.
DeleteStraw has not always been for animals. It used to be used as filling in mattresses back in the day.
ReplyDeleteMy parents talked about their straw mattresses, and how wonderful it was when old straw was exchanged for the new fresh straw.
DeleteI always thought hay and straw were the same. Now I know!
ReplyDeleteNext time you see a bale of hay, look it and smell it.
DeleteOne of my go-to sayings I got from the Little House On The Prairie books- "Make hay while the sun shines".
ReplyDeleteI never pictured you reading that series. Good farming sense.
DeleteOh, yeah read them all. Never have had a series so draw me in.
DeleteSweetie and his brother used to help with the haymaking when they lived in a farming area, as they were strong young teen boys. He remembers them doing thousands of hundred pound bales. It wasn't easy, but the meals the farmers' wives cooked for lunches were stupendous and he remembers them with great fondness.
ReplyDeleteHow wonderful. They are good memories, My mom was one of those farmer wives who laid out a veritable feast. I was the one who washed the dishes.
DeleteI remember alfalfa being called Lucerne and it grew in the orchard to about knee height then two of the step siblings would take a scythe each and start cutting it down. I don't remember how it was stored, but it was fed to the pigs, goats and poultry over winter just to supplement their regular feed. Once it was all cut and stored the chooks were allowed into the orchard to clean up leftovers and bugs.
ReplyDeleteGood work. Lucerne? will look it up! I think hay was often stored loose and mounded. One farmer preferred the loose hay. Said that hay being loose stayed fresh longer. Apparently, baled hay allowed the air and moisture to move throughout the hay.
DeleteGood entry. I remember hay Stacks from my childhood. I even 'humped bails' once in Missouri as a part time job...
ReplyDeletejack.. trying to get back
Then you know the hard work it takes to bail hay.
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