Barley
From Beer
Barley (Hordeum vulgare) is an annual cereal grain, which serves as a major animal feed crop, with smaller amounts used for malting and in health food. It is a member of the grass family Poaceae. In 2005, barley ranked fourth in quantity produced and in area of cultivation of cereal crops in the world (560,000 km²). The domesticated form (H. vulgare) is descended from wild barley (H. spontaneum). Both forms are diploid (2n=14 chromosomes). As wild barley is interfertile with domesticated barley, the two forms are 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 rachis of the former, which enables seed dispersal in the wild.
[edit] Cultivars
Barley can be divided by the number of kernel rows in the head. Two forms have been cultivated; two-row barley (formerly known as Hordeum distichum but now also classed as Hordeum vulgare), and six-row barley (Hordeum vulgare). In two-row barley only one spikelet at each node is fertile; in the four-row and six-row forms, all three are fertile. A four-row type (formerly classed as (Hordeum tetrastichum) is actually a six-row type with very lax structure.
Two-row barley is the oldest form, wild barley having two rows as well. Two-row barley has a lower protein content than six-row barley and thus more fermentable sugars content. High protein barley is best suited for animal feed. Malting barley is usually lower protein ('low grain nitrogen', usually produced without a late fertilizer application) which shows more uniform germination, needs shorter steeping, and has less protein in the extract that can make beer cloudy. Two-row barley is traditionally used in English ale style beers. Six-row barley is common in some American lager style beers, whereas two-row malted summer barley is preferred for traditional German beers. Four-row is unsuitable for brewing.
Barley is widely adaptable and is currently a major crop of the temperate areas where it is grown as a summer crop and tropical areas where it is sown as a winter crop. Its germination time is anywhere from 1 to 3 days. Barley likes to grow under cool conditions but is not particularly winter hardy.
[edit] Uses
Half of the United States' barley production is used as an animal feed. A large part of the remainder is used for malting and is a key ingredient in beer and whisky production. Two-row barley is traditionally used in German and English beers, and six-row barley was traditionally used in American beers. Both varieties are in common usage in America now. Non-alcoholic drinks such as barley water and mugicha (popular in Korea and Japan) are also made from unhulled barley. Barley is also used in soups and stews, particularly in Eastern Europe. A small amount is used in health foods and coffee substitutes.
Barley is more tolerant of soil salinity than wheat, which might explain the increase of barley cultivation on Mesopotamia from the 2nd millennium BC onwards. Barley is not as cold tolerant as the winter wheats (Triticum aestivum), fall rye (Secale cereale) or winter Triticale (X TricticaleWitt.), but may be sown as a winter crop in warmer areas of the world such as Australia.
Barley must have its fibrous outer hull removed before it can be eaten. Barley grains with their hulls still on are called covered barley or "hulled barley". Once the grain has had the inedible hull removed, it is called dehulled barley. At this stage, the grain still has its bran and germ, which are nutritious. Dehulled barley is considered a whole grain, and is a popular health food. Pearl barley or pearled barley is hulled barley which has been processed further to remove the bran. It may be polished, a process known as "pearling". Dehulled or pearl barley may be processed into a variety of barley products, including flour, flakes similar to oatmeal, and grits.
According to a recent study, eating whole grain barley can regulate blood sugar for up to 10 hrs after consumption compared to white or even whole-grain wheat, which has a similar glycemic index.
An additional barley product is the straw. It is placed in mesh bags and floated in fish ponds or water gardens to help reduce algal growth without harming the plants or animals in the habitat.
[edit] See Also
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