Twice-a-week plain dealer. (Cresco, Howard County, Iowa) 1895-1913, 1911-08-15

Farmers who face the problem OF
filling the silo for the first time will
find splendid practical help to meet it
in the bulletin on Filling the Silo''
just issued by the Iowa Agricultural
Experiment Station at Ames, and
now ready for free distribution
Out of an extensive personal expert
ence with silos and out of wide inves-
legations, the author, Prof. W. J.
Kennedy, of the animal husbandry
section, has gathered just the in
formation the man who owns a silo
needs. II covers every phase of silo
filing from the cutting of the green
corn to the feeding of the finished
sf4gs.
Plbfssser Nsnaedy's Suggestions
may Do s5muarized uifder thsse nine
heads:
!. Time To Cut Corn-There is
general agreement among beef pro-
ducers and dairymen that the corn
should be denied, in the dough stage,
or when about one-fourth of the
husks and the lower leaves are turn
ing brown. The nearer corn is to
maturity, the more nutriment it con-
tains, but it must have enough mois-
ture in it to insure fermentation.
Immature corn makes dark col
ored, sour silage which may cause
animals to scour badly.
2. Length in Which Corn Should
Be Cut-There is much difference Of
opinion on this point, the practice
ranging from cuts IL inch in length
TO Y inch and less. The longer cut
means . saving in power and time
in filing; the shorter cut increases
the capacity of the silo and insures
less waste in feeding. All things
considered, the corn should be cut in
either " inch or y inch lengths.
3. Rapid or Slow Filling-This
point is also in dispute and each
method has its advantages and dis
advantages. With slow filling it is
possible to pack the silo thoroughly
by tramping and allowing it's con-
tents to settle. But against this
method it may be urged that 1t takes
SO much time where much silage is
to be put up that some Of the corn
must be put in too green at the be-
ginning and some of it too dry at
the finish. It is also more expensive
than rapid filing. With rapid filling
the cost is reduced to the minimum.
Because short time is consumed,
the quality of silage is likely to be
more uniform. The chief objection
to this method is that after the corn
has settled the silo will be only about
two-thirds full, unless provision is
made for putting in more corn in a
week or ten days after the first fill
ing. This objection is partly over
come where there are two or more
silos to be filled side by side; also by
starting work on Friday, where
single silo requires three days for
filling, continuing through Saturday,
allowing the corn to settle over Sum
day and finishing on Monday. With
fast filling, the farmer should allow
for about ten days. settling, then re-
move the waste at the top of the
silo and refill.
4. Distributing and Packing Corn
1t is essential that the light and
heavy portion of the corn should be
evenly distributed through the silo;
that is, the stalks and ears should
not be allowed to pile up in one part
and the lighter portions, such as the
leaves, in another. The corn should
be uniformly packed to insure good
quality of silage. In packing, the
sides should be kept about two feet
higher than the center, and well
tramped; that wedges the silage
tightly against the sides, helps to
keep the heat of fermentation in the
gas, and thus kills the germs Of
mold. When silage molds at tho
sides, it is a sign that it is not packed
enough against the sides"to prevent
the air from reaching the heated sill
age. Patented distributing devices
are helpful, but a simple and cheap
device may be made by sewing to-
gether a number of sacks with ends
cut out to make tube, which is fas-
tened to the end of the blow pipe
and manipulated by man inside the
silo. Packing the corn is highly i'm
portant. Tramping will do, but it is
better to use two reliable men with
large hampers. That will insure a
minimum of waste.
S. Adding Water During Filling
If corn is cut at the proper time it
Is not likely to need the addition of
water. But if the corn in the silo
at the time Of filing does not feel
moist, water should be added. Water
should be added when the corn Is too
ripe and the leaves and stalks are 80
dry that they will not pack we'll;
when the corn is severely frozen be-
fore it is properly matured for sill
age, leaving leaves and stems dry;
or when reflling the silo late in the
fall with shocked corn. Water may
be added to the silo, or by running
an inch stream of water into the
blower when it is at work. The dry
corn next to the walls should be thor
oughly saturated.