Terms beginning with H

a b c d e f g h i l m o p q r s t u v w y z
h
Hagberg Falling Number

A measure of the quality of wheat and its suitability for certain processes. In practice it is a measure of the viscosity of a broth made from the grain. A sample of the grain is ground, mixed with water and heated. It is put into a narrow tube and the time taken in seconds for a weighted plunger to fall a fixed distance is noted.

Haulms

The stems of potato plants

Hay

Dried grass used for animal feed. It is cut, left to dry in the field and then baled. It is fed to livestock through the winter when fresh grass not available. Nowadays rarely used except for horses as it's production is unreliable in the UK climate. See our stock and crops pages for more details.

Hefted
See hefting.
Hefting

the acclimatising of a flock of hill sheep to 'their' part of the hillside. A hefted flock is worth more to a farmer than one that has not been acclimatised as they roam far less and are easier to manage.

Heifer

A young female cow. A maiden heifer has not yet had a calf.

Herbicides

Chemicals used to control or destroy weeds.

Hill farming

Farming in the upland areas of Britain.

Hoggs

Male or female sheep from weaning to first shearing.

Habitat

The biophysical medium or media (a) occupied (continuously, periodically or occasionally) by an organism or group of organisms; or (b) once occupied (continuously, periodically or occasionally) by an organism, or group of organisms, and into which organisms of that kind have the potential to be reintroduced. (Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 definition)

Hardwood

A hardwood is the wood from a flowering tree, such as a eucalypt.

Harvesting

Forest harvesting is the planned extraction of wood from a forest. Trees are felled (cut down) according to the harvesting plan and the trunks have the branches removed and are cut into logs for transport to the mill.