The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1904-03-16

grain does not make a very heavy stalk,
the crop would be far lighter than further
South, where corn naturally grows a
heavier plant. Or it would be lighter in
the North with the native corn than if
corn from further South was planted for
the purpose of filling the silo. On fertile
bottom lands in Virginia, which would
make so bushels of corn per acre. we
have sometimes gotten 20 tons OF ensil-
age per acre, but on the northern edge
OF the corn belt, while the crop of so
bushels might be made on the land there
would hardly be much more than half the
number of tons of ensilage because of
the lighter character of the corn plant
grown here. Hence there are 50 many
conditions governing the yield that no
proper estimate can be made, for in any
section the yield will vary with the sea
SON. Then we are asked if it is not
cheaper TO dig silo in the ground and
plaster it up than to build one above
ground. No one who has ever tried an
underground silo would be long in an
swering this. The cost of getting the sill
age out OF pit will soon pay for one
above ground, and the silo above ground
is not only cheaper to build but. is far
better as a place to make and keep en-
silagc than any underground pit can be.
"Will the difference In quantity and
quality OF feed made into silage from 10
or 10 acres of land over the old way of
gathering the corn and shredding the
stalks pay for the building of a silo for
the feeding of beef cattle?" There is no
doubt but that it will. The amount of
food in the corn and stalks is not in
creased by the making of it into silage,
but it is in far better and more palata
bic form for the feeding and more OF it.
will be eaten. 1t is doubtless also more
digestible and cattle will gain faster on
it for this reason. Green grass will do
cattle more good than the same grass
dried into hay. Just why we can hardly
say, but every feeder knows that it is so.
The succulence Of the grass and the silage
is the great point in their favor. The ami
mails eat it with better appetite and eat
and digest more of it. Try yourself the
difference between eating a juicy apple
and then trying to chew up dried one.
The dried apple will have just as much
food value as the fresh one, but you will
not enjoy the eating of it as you would
the fresh one. The object of the beef
lCGQeF Is 10 get MS cattle To COuoulllS do
much food as they can properly digest
and assimilate, and the succulence and
palatability of the feed has a great deal
to do with this. "Can cow peas he
planted with the corn and cut with the
corn harvester for making ensilage?o
Our own opinion is that it would he
troublesome work, but on our recent trip
in Maryland we were assured by several
farmers that they do it successfully. We
suppose the peas would have to be plant
ed close in the hill to enable the corn
harvester to get them. We have been
induced to make these remarks from the
number of letters that come to our desk
asking these and similar questions, and
we hope this will be general reply.
Finally, build round silo with wooden
hoops as the best and cheapest form. A
round silo is feet in diameter and 20
feet high will hold something over 100
tons of ensilage, and how many acres will
be needed to make this will depend on
the acres, the season and variety of corn
used