The Magnolia gazette. [volume] (Magnolia, Miss.) 1872-current, 1882-08-11
ENsILAaE OR CORN FODDER
BY FRANCIS MORRIS, OF MARYLAND, PRES
IDENT OF THE RECENT ENsILAGE
CONGRESS.

Read before the American Agricultural
Association held in New York, Feb 1891
The burying of green crops in trench
es in the ground has been pfacriced for
unknown centuries. The French, in
their conquest of Algiers, discovered
that it was the usage Of that country, and
when at loss for forage hunted out the
filled trenches aud made use Of their con-
tents for their cavalry. Iu Asia, on the
mountains of Khiva, the adventurous
Capt. Barnahy found that the only feed
for his horse was obtained from the bur
led crop in the trenches Of the country,
preserved in the same manner as it was
in Algiers. This evidently shows that
the practice had an origin far beyond the
memory of man, and that NJ. Goffart was
teaching us an art which claims histo-
ry long before our time. To him, how
ever, we owe a debt of gratitude as great
rs can be owed to the greatest benefac-
tors of mankind; for he has not only in
troduced into his own country the use Of
ensilage, but through him it has been
introduced into the natural maize coun-
tries, where it hourishes and is indigen-
ious. II is now our duty and our pleas
ure to urge the use of this practice
throughout our Atlantic States, where
Agriculture is at present laborious and
Improbable pursuit. and where the peo-
pie deserve q better fate than to be
obliged to abandon their old homesteads
and seek new homes in the far West
It was in the summer Of 1876 that ]
received newspaper from France Civ
ing me an account of what M. Goffart
was doing, / realized the value of the
experiment, and at once put several acres
of land into corn fodder. My labor was
blest by plentiful yield, and I built 9
silos of brick without cementing. The
middle silo of the three bad ensilage as
good as ever had. The loss on the sides
of the other two was small percentage,
but sufficient to teach me that brick walls
did not exclude the oxygen of the atmos-
phere. After this covered them over
with cement, and find they are now
/ perfect. These silos used for the first
two years. Since then have increased
my acreage Of corn fodder, and with the
assistance of yoke of oxen and a scra.
per dug out trenches eleven feet wide al
top, seven at bottom, and seven or more
feet deep. We fill these full, and ther
put as much as we can pile on it, anC
cover it up with boards or earth. al
ways use felt covering on the top o
the fodder to keep it clean and the al
ont. We probably put 20inches of eartl
on it, aud we frequently run the oxel
and cart over it, The top of the earth
| or the top OF the silo or trench, VI
watch, and if there are any cracks we fil
them up. We exclude the air under al
circumstances. These slIos or trenches
are made at nominal expense, an6 th
ensilage comes out in as good condition
as any ensiIage have seen. My pres
ent practice is to put my trenches in th
! field where the corn grows. would ad
wise farmers not to be alarmed at th
words "silo" aud "ensiIage. ''or any 9th
err fancy words. Cut up your corn fod
der into ! or inch pieces, put into you
trenches. cover them with earth to e,
clude the air. and you will never fail
have q food better than any grass 70
u can raise for love or money.