Husk

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Husk (or hull) in botany is the outer shell or coating of a seed. In the United States, the term husk often refers to the leafy outer covering of an ear of maize (corn) as it grows on the plant. Literally, a husk or hull includes the protective outer covering of a seed, fruit, or vegetable.

It can also refer to the exuvia of insects or other small animals left behind after moulting.

The term husk dates to c.14, it is probably based on Middle Dutch word huusken meaning 'little house', which is derived from hūs meaning house.^[1]

In cooking, hull can also refer to other waste parts of fruits and vegetables, notably the cap or sepal of a strawberry.^[2]

Grains such as wheat and barley have husks. The grains are the entire seed of a plant. The seed of a grain (which the grain industry calls a “kernel”) is made up of three key edible parts – the bran, the germ, and the endosperm – which are all protected by an inedible husk that protects the kernel from damage by sunlight, pests, water and disease.^[3]