Farming Glossary
A:
acre- A unit of area in the U.S. Customary System, used in land measurement
equal to 4,840 square yards, or 43,560 square feet- about the size of a football field.
agriculture- The science, art, and business of cultivating soil, producing crops, and raising livestock
auction- Market for cattle, sheep, etc. through which an auctioneer sells the livestock to the highest bidder.
B:
bale- A large package of raw or finished material tightly
bound with twine or wire and often wrapped.
barbed wire- Strong steel wire with small spikes or barbs attached to keep cattle inside pastures
beef- Meat from cattle other than calves. Meat from calves if called veal.
bins- Round, concrete or corrugated metal covered structures which are used to store grains.
bit- The metal mouthpiece of a bridle, used to steer or direct the horse.
boar- A male pig.
bovine- Refers to a general family grouping of cattle.
brand- Special mark or identifying design owned by a rancher and used in registering and identifying his cattle
and horses made by burning with a hot iron; may consist of a letter, numeral, character, or symbol, or a
combination of one or more of these; brands are considered the trademark for the rangeland signifying pride of
ownership in livestock.
branding- The act of marking an animal.
branding iron- Iron or steel tool used for “branding” or marking cattle; the end of the iron was placed in a fire
until hot, then placed against the hide of the calf to mark it as belonging to a particular ranch.
breed- Cattle of common origin and having characteristics that distinguish them from other groups within the
same species.
bridle- Headgear for a horse, including a bit and reins.
bronco- A small half-wild horse.
bull- Male un-castrated bovine (cow). Well-bred males are raised to father cattle in a cow herd. Genetics is big
business in the cattle industry today.
by-product- Product of considerably less value than the major product. i.e. the hide is a by-product while beef is
the major product.
bushel- A unit of volume or capacity in the U.S. Customary System, used in dry measure and equal to 4 pecks,
2,510.42 cubic inches, or 35.24 liters- about the size of a round laundry basket.
byproduct- Something produced in the making of something else.
C:
calf- Newborn or young of cattle; cattlemen plan for calves to be born in early spring
calve- Giving birth to a calf.
cattle- Bovine animals kept on a farm or ranch
chaps- Leather leggings resembling trousers without a seat; worn to protect cowboys from thorny brush.
colt- The young of the horse.
commodity- An article of trade or commerce, especially an agricultural or mining product that can be processed
and resold.
combine harvester- A machine principally used for harvesting wheat and often other grains. Came into wide
use in the U.S. in the 1920’s and 30’s. Called a combine because it combines jobs
previously done by other individual machines. It cuts the standing grain, threshes
out the grain from the straw or chaff, cleans the grain, and discharges it into bags or grain reservoirs.
compost- The process of decomposing organic wastes such as table scraps, straw or manure for use as
fertilizer.
corral- An enclosure for confining or capturing livestock.
cow- A female bovine. This term is also used as a generic reference to cattle.
cowboy hat- Used to protect the cowboy’s head from the harsh sun, rain, and other weather that might be
encountered on the trail or ranch.
crop- Cultivated plants or agricultural produce, such as grain, vegetables, or fruit, considered as a group which
are grown and harvested or picked to eat or sell.
crop rotation- The practice of changing the type of crop grown in a particular filed from season to season.
cultivation- The act of loosening or breaking up the soil-to prepare and use for the raising of crops.
custom harvester- An individual, a family, or a group of individuals whose business is to hire out to harvest crops
for farmers. They provide the equipment such as combines, grain trucks, semi-tractor trailer trucks, grain carts
and tractors to bring the mature crops in and to deliver them either to the farmer’s storage facility or to a
commercial facility such as a grain elevator.
cutting horse- A small, quick horse trained to cut cattle out of a herd.
D:
dairy cow- a cow used to produce milk
disk- A piece of farm equipment pulled behind a tractor to prepare soil. It is used in preparation of fields prior to
planting and also to keep weeds under control.
drill- A piece of equipment for seeding that is pulled behind a tractor. The drill is used to plant wheat and other
small seed crops. It makes a long groove in the soil, drops the seeds into it, and the covers and firms the soil
above the seed.
drive- Method of rounding up cattle by scattering cowboys over the range and pushing the cattle to one place.
drought- A long period of abnormally low rainfall, especially one that adversely affects growing or living
conditions.
E:
ecosystems- A system of relationships between organisms and their environments.
erosion- Soil movement through water and wind action.
ewe- A female sheep.
F:
fertilizer- Any of a large number of natural and synthetic materials, including manure and nitrogen, phosphorus,
and potassium compounds, spread on or worked into soil to increase its capacity to support plant growth.
filly- Female foal or colt.
fleece- Wool as it is shorn from the sheep.
G:
gelding- A castrated horse.
germination- The process of a seed becoming a plant.
gilt- A female pig before it has mated and given birth for the first time.
grain elevator- A commercial storage facility used for storing grain.
grains- Members of the grass family cultivated primarily for their starchy seeds. Wheat, corn (maize), rye, oats,
barley, sorghum, and some of the millets are common grains.
H:
halter- A headstall usually with an attached rope or strap for holding and leading an animal.
harvest- The process of threshing or picking a grain crop by a large machine called a combine. It can also refer
to picking vegetables and fruit crops by hand.
hay- Product such as alfalfa and certain grasses which are cut, baled and fed to animals.
heifer- A young cow; a cow with has not given birth, raised to replace the older cows in a herd or to provide meat.
horn- The projection, often bent forward, above the pommel on the saddle.
horse- A solid-hoofed, herbivorous animal used on ranched for riding and herding.
I:
irrigation- The act of supplying water by means of ditches, pipes or streams
L:
lamb- Young sheep of either sex less than one year of age.
lariat- A rope made from grass, polyester, or nylon; used to lasso livestock.
lasso- A rope with a noose used to catch livestock.
livestock- Horses, cattle, sheep, and other animals kept on a farm or ranch.
longhorn- Type of cattle with long horns, descended from cattle originally brought from Spain by explorers.
M:
mare- A female horse.
mustang- Small, hardy, half-wild horse.
O:
organic farming- A farming technique that avoids all synthetic chemical inputs.
P:
piglet- A young pig.
planter- A piece of equipment for seeding that is pulled behind a tractor. The planter is used to seed coarser
grain seeds such as corn, soybeans, and sunflowers.
product- Something produced by human or mechanical effort or by a natural process.
R:
ram- Male sheep of any age that has not been castrated.
range- Area of open land used for a particular purpose, as for cattle grazing.
reins- Strap or cord (in pairs) that runs from the bridle bit around the horse’s neck, to be held and manipulated by
the rider. These straps manipulate the bit and apply pressure on a horse’s mouth and neck in order to steer the
animal.
rodeo- Competitions held between cowboys in the skills mastered during the roundup
and on trail drives; skills might include calf roping and bronco riding; later rodeos became
formalized and were held in arenas on set dates.
round up- Gathering cattle together and driving them in for branding.
S:
saddle- Leather-covered seat for a rider on horseback.
saddle blanket- Blanket placed under the saddle to cushion the horse’s withers and to soak up sweat.
sow- A female pig which has given birth to a litter of piglets.
spurs- Small bone, wood or metal spikes fastened to a boot by a leather strip used to guide a horse with pressure
from the rider.
stallion- Male horse which is not castrated.
stampede- A sudden flight of running away by cattle; caused by any number of factors including lightening and
thunder, a slip or whinny of a horse, a rattlesnake, or the smell of water by thirsty cattle, especially longhorns.
steer- A male cattle animal castrated and raised for beef.
stirrup- A device hung from each side of a saddle to receive the rider’s foot. They aid the rider in mounting and
provide support while riding.
stockyard- An enclosure with pens and sheds connected with a slaughterhouse or market for the temporary
keeping of cattle, sheep, pigs, or horses.
straw- The stems of the wheat or oat plants which are cut and baled and often used for animal bedding.
Sometimes, straw is fed to animals.
W:
wether- A castrated male sheep.
Y:
yield- An amount produced.