Stubble or short grass left in a field after harvesting grain; also called aftermath.
From Old English or Middle English, possibly related to 'arish' or dialectal forms. It may be connected to 'aftermath' and terms describing second growth after harvest.
Farmers called this 'arrish' because they'd let their animals graze on it after harvest—it was free food, and those grazing animals would fertilize the field naturally for next year's crop, making it an early form of sustainable farming.
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