Editing Hay (section)

{{short description|Dried grass, legumes or other herbaceous plants used as animal fodder}}
{{About|dried plant material used as animal food||}}
{{Redirect|Haymaking}}
{{Redirect2|Haystack|Haystacks}}
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{{multiple image
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 | image1 = roundbale1.jpg
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 | footer = Fresh grass hay, newly baled.
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'''Hay''' is [[Graminoid|grass]], [[legume]]s, or other [[herbaceous plant]]s that have been cut and dried to be stored for use as [[animal fodder]], either for large [[grazing]] animals raised as [[livestock]], such as [[cattle]], [[horse]]s, [[domestic goat|goats]], and [[sheep]], or for smaller domesticated animals such as [[Domestic rabbit|rabbits]]<ref>{{Cite web |last=Wassam |date=2024-05-12 |title=Best Food items to feed to Rabbits? |url=https://bunnyvault.com/rabbits-food-what-do-bunnies-eat/ |access-date=2024-07-19 |website=Bunny Vault |language=en-US}}</ref> and [[guinea pig]]s. [[Domestic pig|Pigs]] can eat hay, but do not digest it as efficiently as [[herbivore]]s do.

Hay can be used as animal fodder when or where there is not enough [[pasture]] or [[rangeland]] on which to graze an animal, when grazing is not feasible due to weather (such as during the winter), or when lush pasture by itself would be too rich for the health of the animal. It is also fed when an animal cannot access any pastures—for example, when the animal is being kept in a [[stable]] or [[barn]].

Hay production and harvest, commonly known as "making hay",<ref>{{cite web|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=xvUhAQAAIAAJ&pg=PA32|page=32|title=The Best Method of Managing the Hay Crop|publisher=The Farmer's Magazine|date=1870}}</ref> "haymaking", "haying" or "doing hay", involves a multiple step process: cutting, drying or "curing", raking, processing, and storing. Hayfields do not have to be reseeded each year in the way that [[grain]] crops are, but regular fertilizing is usually desirable, and overseeding a field every few years helps increase yield.