The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1892-08-17
To Build or Not to Build +?
BY j. W. NEWTON.

Many farmer is debating whether
or not he shall build a silo. / have
come to believe that it would pay most
dairy farmers to build one. Aside
from the question of the comparative
value OF sliced and unsiloed corn, |
think that economy in labor and in
storage room would make ensilage pay.
1t is amazing what an amount of fodder
you can get into a silo, and when you
get it in, it is in and done with until
you want to feed it. Curing corn in
the field is dismal work when there is
much rain, and the mice, crows, squir-
rels, and sometimes the sparrows, de-
stroy great deal in my fields. Then
corn is at its best when the kernels be-
gin to glaze, and if such corn is dried
off and fed without husking, there will
be good deal of loss. The corn will
not be we'll masticated, but if the same
corn is put into the silo, the heat and
moisture will keep the corn soft so
there will be but little loss.
We could never make as good winter
butter on corn fodder as we can on
good sweet ensilage. And it is of no
use to follow the old methods of max
ing butter in midsummer. My pasture
will carry twice the stock from the mid
die of July that it will carry the rest of
the season. There are rich pastures
back near the mountains in which one
can get COWS kept the latter part of the
summer. These pastures were form
erly used to fatten cattle in, but now
that so little beef is fattened it is hard
to get stock to fill them.
II farmer has lumber lot, building
silo need cost but little. l used
hemlock boards principally. Some
claim they will outlast spruce. Many
farmers seem to think it necessary Ia
put heavy square timbers into the frame
of silo.' Two by eight, ten or twelve
is as large as is necessary. For stills
spike three of these together, tapping
the ends. A good way is to spike the
top plank of the sill to the bottom of the
studding, spike on plank to the top oil
the studding for plate, and then raise
the side into its place and spike the tor
plank of the sill to the lower planks
If you must use poor boards, put them
next to the studding near the top. ]
put on course of boards, covered them
with common roofing cement, laid
sheathing paper on this, tapping the
edges, then covered the paper with the
cement. AS fast as this was done,
put on the second course of boards
The boards should be planed on one
side and the rough sides placed next tc
the paper. Care should be taken that
the walls are strong enough not to
spring out away from the ensilage. II
the silo is built in the bay of barn, the
timbers of the silo can rest against the
timbers of the barn.
/ do not think the cost of silo need
deter any farmer from building one
The real trouble is not here, especially
in region where lumber is cheap, OF
where farmers own lumber lots. The
one great trouble is the cost of machin
cry to cut and elevate the ensilage. To
buy everything in good shape will cost
nearly or quite 5000. There are cases
where two or three farmers can buy
this machinery together and thus lessen
the cost to each. And power, horse
or steam, is a most convenient thing to
have on farm, if one can buy and
store the necessary machinery. But
the experience of hundreds of farmers
demonstrates that ensilage can be put in
whole and will come out in as good con-
dition as when cut. The problem for
many farmers is how to get whole corn
into the silo. / am going to try horse
hay fork rig, substituting trip hook and
sings in place of the hay fork. The
fork saves pitching over the beams and
so the rig can be put to twoefold use.
One thing is certain, ensilage has come
to stay, and the great majority of those
who use it are more than satisfied.