St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1890-02-27
slLO AND ENsILAGE.


The Experience OF a Practical
Man in the Indiana Farmer.
The year just closed has been one
that will long he remembered as one of
the most profitable to the sheep and
wool growers of the state of Indiana.
With mutton selling in our markets for
more money per hundred weight than
either pork or beef, there must be more
money in sheep. and by cheapening the
cost of production we can make it even
more profitable, and believe it can be
done by use of the silo. On this sub
Ject SO much has been said and
written, that / can give you
nothing new. SilOS are be-
ing built by practical farmers all over
the country, and with few exceptions
are giving good satisfaction and all of
our experimental stations except one
shave fallen into line. and say that en-
silage is all right. and he, Prof. Sanborn,
is forced to admit that there is less
waste In ensilage than in dry fodder.
He estimates the loss of ensilage at II
per cent. and fodder at A per cent,
which gives an advantage of 81 per cent
in favor of ensilage. Prof. Henry SAYS
the loss and feeding value between en-
silage and good dry fodder is very small,
but says, when say good dry fodder
mean it, but the average farmer has
not the time or money to waste in cur
ing fodder in that way"
have letter from him stating that
there are $500 silos in the state of Wis
cOnSin, aid many more will be built the
coming season. He also writes that at
farmers institutes, nearly every meet
lnp UlUn fhnif nvnarauan nit In
enSilage, and in most every case they
were satisfied with it. If not successful
in the first attempt, it was owing to
some slight mistake in the building or
filling, which they could correct next
time.
The advantages of ensilage are many,
and the disadvantages few. Our long,
cold winters, with stock shut up around
straw stacks and in stables without
anything TO eat but the dry hay, straw
and Northumberland fodder, is it any
wonder that our stock look thin and
poor in the spring, and takes half a
summer to get them in good living con-
dition?
ENsILAGE FOR SMALL FARMS.
With the addition of ensilage the
farmers could bring their stork through
the winter in very good condition, then
when turned OH grass would be ready
to grow, find that stock will eat more
dry, rough feed, when fed ensilage. A
sllo OF LOO tons capacity would soon pay
for itself on any msdium-SiZed farm.
For the two, three, four and five hum
dred acre farmers | have nothing to
say, these men will take. care of them
selves. The small farm ers are the ones
that silO has come to help and who
above all others will be benefited by it.
EXPERIENCE WITH A SIIO.
l built and filled my silo in 1888 for
the first time, built of wood above
ground against end of barn, opening
out in feed room. Used 2xs studs.
sixteen feet long. drop siding on out
side; on inside for sheeting rough oak
boards two thicknesSes, with building
paper between; two partitions built
same way makes three Silos. Had
fair quantity of ensilage, and fair sue
cess in feeding it, but some of it spoiled
on account of building not having been
built air tight. Filled it again this year
the first week in October, B and w en-
silage corn; put in eight acres of tainly-
drilled corn, something like 100 tons. 1t
was not quite ripe enough to make good
sweet ensilage. when cut and drawn
direct to SilO, as we did this year, with
out whiting.
M WA1 Ot
is this: We used two teams to draw
corn from field to silo. as it was not
over forty rods awav. The corn was
cut and placed on low wagons with hay
ladders on, by the two men and team
ster, without throwing it on the ground.
The teams are not out of field long, as,
by the use of chains placed on hay lad
der and fastened at rear end of rack or
wagon. reaching to front end, and with
another chain fastened to building, the
teamster fastens the two chains to-
gether and drives Off and rolls load
of corn off the back end of hay
ladder five or six feet from cutter, it is
then picked up by two men, and run
through No. 16 Silver d Deming cut
ter, and elevated into silo by thirty
foot carrier attached to cutter. at the
rate of ton in ten or twelve minutes.
In silo it is kept level, and tramped
down by one good man or two poor
hands. We filled each bin to the top,
let it stand two days and half to settle
and heat, then filled it again to the top,
let stand the same time, covered with
straw five or six inches deep. and on
top of the straw put six or eight inches
of sawdust. Let it stand four to six
weeks. and 1t is ready for feeding.
FEEDING SILAGE.
When ready for use remove covering,
take it all off the top of one silo as it
will not freeze or spoil. Keep the feed
level and remove some silage from
IL your work is well done in every Wav,
and your silage crop ripe enough, your
building strong and air tight, you will
have feed that all kinds of stock will
relish and do well on. We are feeding
it as part ration only,.t all kinds of
stock, except sheep and mich cows. 1t
is about all we feed them, and many
of our ewes are fat enough for mutton
and never had stock do better and
the feed has been ensilage, straw and
fodder.
CAUSE OF FAILURES.
Where men make failures of ensilage
it comes from two causes, and two only;
they are either improperly constructed
or filled with watery, immature crops.
You cannot make good food out of half
matured corn or clover. Let your silage
crop stand till it is ripe enough to make
good fodder or hay, then it will have
higher feeding value and will be
sweeter. Stock will do much better
on it.
/ believe from my experience it would
pay a-beginner to get some one to help
him-one that has had experience. It
would have saved me quite a loss of
food the first year, but now / would
rather undertake to put up 100 tons of
ensilage than make fifty tons of hay.
For L am not at the mercy of the
weather as the haymaker is, and can
put up enSilage cheaper than hay. And
one more point in concluding, why not
use crop that will make 100 to 200 tons
of feed off Of ten acres instead OF crop
that will make fifteen to twenty tons of
hay2
CO-OPERATiVE KILLING.