Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1909-05-12
ADVANTAGES OF SILAGE.
Prof. D. H. Otis, University of Wis
coueiu


consin.
Of the various feeds which are the
most palatable, corn silage is without
doubt the cheapest and most effective
to add to the ration. It is valuable
feed for dairy and beef cattle and also
for horses, calves and sheep. Many of
the leading Wisconsin farmers find
that silage can be handled as cheap,
if not cheaper, than the corn crop and
be handled in the usual manner.
Silage furnishes a succulent feed
with very little waste, and will
always be ready to use.
In combination with alfalfa or
clover, with mixture of corn or
barley for grain, silage furnishes an
especially good ration, all grown on
the, farm and cheaper than mill
feeds. The Importance of palatability
cannot be overestimated. as it in
creases the amount Of feed eaten and
when properly assimilated. the
more the animal eats the larger pro-
duct it will return.
SILAGE SAVES SPACE.
A ton of mixed hay occupies 400
cubic feet of space. and eight tons of
corn silage can be put in the same
amount of room. The ton of mixed
nav contains about $50 pounds of
digestible dry matter. while eight
tons of silage contains 2. $50 pounds of
dry matter. This one point of the
economical storage of the corn crop,
when put up in the form OF silage. is
worthy of attention where a large
number of animals are fed.
The cost of handling the corn crop
in the form of silage is less than
when any other method is used. One
of the leading Wisconsin farmers re-
ports that it cost him S. 80 to $50
per ton or 81 per acre to put this corn
crop into the silo. The same area
of corn would yield about $50 baskets,
which would cost him So for husking.
while the cost of cutting, stacking,
shredding, and grinding would be
about double what it costs to put the
same crop into the silo.
USEFUL IN DRY SUMMERS.
The advantages of summer feeding
of silage, particularly during periods
of drought, is fully appreciated by
those who have tried it. During the
latter part of the past summer Wis
consin suffered severe drought, and
corn silage was fed to the university
dairy herd. The flow of milk was
never kept up so we'll during the
summer as it was by the use of this
silage. The summer soil is sure to
become more important factor in
successful dairying. &
The use of silage for fattening beef
cattle has been tested at number of
experiment stations and by stockmen
with excellent results. In expert
ments conducted by the writer in
1904, it was found that silage fed
steers sold at $4.95 per 100 pounds.
while those fed no s1lage brought
only $4.7O per 100 pounds, gain of
25 cents in favor of the silage-fed
animals. 1t was found that for every
100 pounds of gain, All pounds OF
silage fed saved IS pounds of grain
and 156 pounds of alfalfa.
IL these tests silage was fed in con-
nection with alfalfa hay, corn chop,
kafir corn chop, and cotton seed meal.
The average soil. in unusual seasons,
will produce 10 to 10 tons of green
cron per acre. Even with a yield
of 10 tons per acre, there is an in
come, according to this experiment,
of about S33 per acre.
The financial statement of this ex-
pertinent showed that the silage-fed
steers made a profit of "a 10 per
head while the same grade of steers
fed on the same feed except silage,
lost 81. AZ per head. More silos
should be built for summer use In
Wisconsin; and this is the time to
plan for the crop.