The Grenada gazette. (Grenada, Miss.) 1885-18??, 1886-10-16
The slLo
Plans Adopted by an Economical .
Ingenious Agricultural.

= A1uO ~ 80 ~o
Ingenious Agricultural.
One of the chief reasons why I have
not before this built a silo was because
of the supposed expense, and not hay.
ing a very large stock of cattle, did
not clearly see an adequate return for
the outlay. This year determined to
build a silo for the storing of my usual
millet crop, and how well | have sue
ceeded, l leave those who read this to
judge.
A wooden silo has always been my
idea, and so / built of that material,
using one-half of the large bay in my
barn, letting it 60 down through to a
level with the floor in the basement,
where my stables are The only ex-
cavating l had to do was to dig out for
the foundation about n foot below
the level. to get sure footing for the
structure, SO it would be secure at the
bottom, and as this ''sink' was in
firmly compressed coarse gravel, it
made a most excellent base. All the
material, lumber and cement, was
purchased. The door and joists of the
barn were taken out of the part de-
signed for the silo, and gave me sills
on three sides for the center support.
or backing for the studding. am
not noted for my ability as a workerin
wood, but l set up the frame. two by
eight inch studding, setting them
twenty inches apart. A plank was set
up edgewisc around the ''sink."
against which to place the bot
tom of the studding, the cement
mortar worked in between the
plank, and the gravel SO that
there should not be any giving
away, or springing at the bottom.
The inside of the silo was lined up
with inch pine boards, and for fear
that the corners would pull apart, the
boards were crossed on the corners.
This can only be done with every 9TH
er board, so three scantlings were
used at each corner in
this style: - and when
the boards are securely
nailed to the three scantlings, with
good steel nails, it can not be pulled
apart. The silo was next papered
with heavy tarrcd paper, with good
threc-inch laps, and doubled in the
The silo was then faced with
Norway pine flooring, putting it on up
and down, and double mailing with
steel nails, which were, after driving,
turned down on the outside to half
clinch them. The inside walls wrro
then treated to three coats of wash.
made of two gallons of coal oil and
one gallon of linseed oil, a fluid which
was very penetrating, and supposed to
resist the action of the moist contents
of the pit. The bottom was then
plastered with cement mortar. Two
small doors were sawed out in the
lower part, a strip of tarred paper put
over each aperture, and the doors
forced back into their places-an air.
tight shut being the result, and the
silo, with a measured capacity of 10
tons, was complete. The cost Of inn-
terial all told was s3l.3j, all built by
my own personal labor, ave $3.50
paid the mason for srou..ng the bot
tom; total cost. 1872. %.
l filled the silo full of German mill
let. filing the afternoon of each day,
and allowing the heat to reach about
one hundred degrees, which it would
readily do in twenty-four hours. Aft
err allowing the last filling some thirty
hours to heat, about a foot of dry mate
rial was scattered evenly over the SUR
face, which was then covered with
tarred paper. allowing good lap to
each strip. The paper was cut long,
so tina: an eight-inch end would come
up against the sides, and then this was
tloored over with one and a quarter
inch ash lumber. Then several cross
were put on to make the cover
settle evenly. For weights, a couple
of loads of moderately wilted mlllet
used, using the %precaution to
Lave the protruding ends and sides of
tarred paper put upagainst the wall
face, and millet pushed mp firmly
against it, to hold it in its place, and
make an alright '.ioint." All tho
m,llet "a put in without going through
the fodder cutter. 1t was raked imme-
after moving, and allowed to
wilt slightly in the win-rows. The
Of putting the millct into tho
silo, aside IRON my own labor, was less
ten cents nor ten --(nr. f0UNjru