What is the best type of straw to feed cattle?
In order of preference, cattle will eat oat straw before barley straw, followed by legume straws, and wheat straw. The quality of legume straw can be extremely variable. The more leaves that are on the stems the better, but it can be very coarse and of poor quality. Coarse stems are also harder to dry down so mould growth may be present. Cattle also prefer straw that has aged a year or more, it is slightly more palatable and digestible.
