A
baler is a piece of
farm machinery used to compress a cut and raked crop (such as
hay,
cotton,
straw, or
silage) into compact bales that are easy to handle, transport, and store. Several different types of balers are commonly used, each producing a different type of bale – rectangular or cylindrical, of various sizes, bound with
twine,
strapping,
netting, or
wire.