Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1881-12-31
Silos and Ensilage.

In building silo. it Is very important
that suitable location be selected All
can not be equally we'll accommodated in
this regard, for the silo must be under or
near the stable where the ensilage Is to be
fed. Some barns have no cellars, and
some are located on soil so wet that neither
cellars nor underground silos would be
practicable. When making selection
for location, three things must not be for
gotten: convenience in filling. nearness
to the stable. and ease of handling the
cured ensilage. Convenience of filling
calls for plenty of room outside and above
the pitt for setting the cutting machine and
horse or steam power used. and tor the
| teams which haul the corn from the field.
Az these take room, and to save lifting.
| the pit should be below the level of the
| machines and teams. A side hill will
usually afford more conveniences than
level ground. and where there are barn
cellars, an incline in the surface Is pre-
sumed. Silos are sometimes built in
cellars that are already dry. but often
they are located just outside. or made the
part OF an extended basement. Having
provided for easy filling. they should then
be put just as near the place of feeding rs
practicable.
Having selected suitable spot, four
solid, tight, perpendicular walls are
usually built, of such thickness as TO be
able to stand all the pressure that may be
brought to bear against them when the
silo is filed. and the weight of stones put
in place. The walls may be of brick.
stone, or laid up dry and pointed and ce-
mented. or concrete wall may be made
of cobble stones and thin cement mortar
| The material at command must be the
guide in making choice OF the kind Of
wall. Silos dug wholly under ground in
solid earth, are talked Of, with the cement
laid directly upon the earth without walls
of any kind. but we have seen none, and
have some doubt whether such pits would
be practicable, unless they were made
| round. like water cisterDs, so that the
pressure would be equal in every part.
Until such method Of building is proved
| by actual practice to be sufficient, we
could not recommend it.. Silos are usual
| ly built in parallelogram form, so that the
ensilage NAV be used out from one end,
thus leaving as small face exposed to
the atmosphere as possible. The cost Of
sio will depend upon the price of ma
hauled. and the price paid for the labor
TtJulTtu. "A ihIE dNcIbkt tpst WOui0 sCCUu
to be about a115 or $120.
The cost of growing the corn and filling
the silo varies quite as much as the es-
| according to the estimates of different
farmers who have experimental. varies
| from one dollar to two dollars per ton, for
growing and putting the corn in the
silo.
The effect of ensilage on cattle, accord
ing to reports received. is almost uniform
ly favorable. The milk is increased from
one to two quarts per COW, when they
go from dry hay to ensilsge. and they
shrink again when changed to hay. The
| testimony thus far, from nearly all who
have given the snsilage trial, Is that it is
cheap; cows like it; do well upon ii I;
| and that it exerts no deleterious influence
on the milk or butter. Still II must be re-
membered that, so far as this generation
is concerned. the system is entirely new.
and that sufficient time has not elapsed
since the feeding Of eDsilage was intro
duced. to give us data upon which TO form
definite opinions. particularly regarding
its effect upon the health Of cattle.
If ensilage feeding proves a success In
| this country, il must to a considerable ex-
tent revolutionize existing ideas and meth
DDS Of conducting farms. The chief gain
to the farmer will be in permitting him to
grow corn instead Of grass for feeding.
The former producing several times as
much food per acre as the latter. That
there is an ensilage ''fever'' raging
through the country. there is not shadow
Of doubt; many are so crazed by wild ex-
pectations that they are rendered unable
| to Judge with any degree of reason. Il
is useless to claim that something can be
produced from nothing. even by silo pro-
cess. That good results will come from
the excitement. we have no doubt, al
though not always from the direction an
| ticipated Indian corn, a. forage plant,
will be better appreciated, and more land
will be devoted to forage crops, and less
10 light crops Of hay. What is wanted
now is reports Of exact and well ascer-
tanned facts.-N. T.. Farmer.