The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1877-1885, 1880-07-29
She Farm,
GREEN FODDER ALL THE YEAR.
Ensilage System, and Valuable
Hints to Farmers.

4LuS Val ~ ~ AAoSSAbc AoSE -
Born and bred upon the farm, now find
like others, after many years of profession
and business labor, occupation for a portion
of my time, with recreation and health. in
agriculture. [ am glad to avail myself of
the courtesy of the Farmers Club to state
my experience in ensIlage, or preserving
food for cattle In a green state. So deeply
convinced am |. from experience, OF the i'm
pOrtance OF this subject to American farmers,
that [ shall make no apology for urging it upon
their Immediate attention through this club.
have practised this system for years, have
applied it to common fodder corn, red clio
yer. pearl-millet, West India millet or
Guinea corn, green rye, green oats and mix
ed grasses in which clover predominated,
with entire success in every case. The last
year | preserved about one hundred tons.
/ have never lost any fodder whatever thus
preserved, but during the whole experiment
It has been perfectly preserved and better
than when fed fresh and green from the
the process the food thus preserved has no
tendency either to scour or bloat the ami
mails fed. It is eaten up eagerly and clean,
leaf and stalk, without any loss whatever,
stock thus fed exhibits the highest condi-
ton of health and thrift. For mich cows,
to which have mainly fed it, it surpasses
any otherfood have ever tried. 1t increases
the quantity of milk L.uch beyond dried food,
and the quality is better than that produced
from the same fodder wnen fed fresh and
green from the field. This is owing, | think,
to the fact that it does not scour or bloat
the animals, while 1T retains its natural
ioices and nutritious qualities in the most
digestible form. The process is not unlike
that by which saukraut is made, and so much
is food thus preserved improved, especially
for mich COWS, that [ think no one who un- |
derstands the process and has facilities for
practising it would after trial continue the
present method of softing or feeding fodder
crops fresh cut from the field. The process
is exceeding simple and easily practised.
The conditions Of success are these:
Frst-The preserving pits or receptacles
must be wholly air tight, so that when seal
ed the air cannot come IN contact with the
food to be preserved.
Second-The pits must be of form and di-
mansions as will best facilitate the settling
and compactinc ofthe food into a solid mass, |
and when opened for feeding VIII xpose as
small a part of the surface to the atmOs-
phere as Practicable.
Ihir1-The fodder must be cut green
when In the best condition or IN bloom,
passed Immediately through the cutting
machine to reduce it to uniform short lengths
of not more than one inch, and at once be
do posted and trod firmly into the pit. suffl-
ci ent salt being used to render it palatable,
hut no more. As fermentation, which will
M at once, proceeds and the mass
settles. the cutting and treadlng IN OF
fresh fodder must be continued from day to
dav. after an interval of about thlrty-six
hours, until the pit is filled and settling has
nearly ceased.
Fourth-The pit, as soon as completely
filed and settling has ceased, must be seal
-l-l. H. - xrhony onI arrpSt tpr-
mentation. and must be kept so sealed until
onened for use. At the risk of p~rollxlty /
will state with more detail my own prac-
tlce.
THE PRESERVING PITS.
| make my pits of hard brick: with -
inch nerpendicular walls. well laid In cement
with smooth Joints. If the ground is sandy
or gravellv, the outside Of the walls next
he earth is covered with a coat OF cement,
or the walls are filled in behind with clay, or
clayey earth, to prevent the passage OF the
air through them. The bottoms are also
pits are made S to 10 feet wide, from l6 to
% feet long, and about 10 feet deep. The
deeper the pits the more they will contain
proportion to measurement, owing to
greater density or the contents from the
of the mass above. In all cases
practicable pits should be made at
least 20 feet deep. The walls are made so
smooth upon inner sides as to offer no OBJ
stable to the settling or compacting OF the
food by friction of the sides. These pits
are made either open at the top and CD -er-
ed with a roof. or arched over under gr ,und,
with two necks to each coming up To with
In one foot of the surface OF the ground.
which they are filled and the necks
then sealed with earth. This last construc-
ton [ have found most convenient in con-
.nection with basement stables, to which the
food is carried or wheeled by a passage from
the pits through the foundation wall of the
In this construction | make one pit
parallel with this foundation wall, and from
the side of this pit most distant from the
other rows of pits are made at right
angles with and connecting with this, and
with each other by doorways, as will be un-