is barley a form of wheat
No. Barley is not wheat at all. Barley and wheat are two different species of cereal grasses belonging to the family Triticeae. Barley does belong in the wheat family, which is, as mentioned, Triticeae, but is of an entirely different species from wheat. The species name for barley is Hordeum vulgare, and the species name for wheat is Triticum aestivum. No doubt either look similar, but both are quite different from the other.