Barley vegetable

Barley is a cereal grain derived from the annual grass Hordeum vulgare. It serves as a major animal feed crop, with smaller amounts used for malting and in health food, as well as the making of the alcoholic beverages beer and whisky. In 2005 ranking of cereal crops in the world, barley was fourth in quantity produced and in area of cultivation (560,000 km²). It is still used as a food staple in the middle east.

It is a member of the grass family. The domesticated form (H. vulgare) is descended from wild barley (H. spontaneum) and they are inter-fertile.The two forms are therefore often treated as one species, Hordeum vulgare, divided into subspecies spontaneum (wild) and subspecies vulgare (domesticated). The main difference between the two forms is the brittle spike on the seeds of the spontaneum, which assists dispersal.

Food

Oats, barley, and some products made from them