The Bottineau courant. (Bottineau, Bottineau County, N.D.) 1895-1929, 1913-10-03

~ than anywhere
else. It does away
with the need Of
. large pasture
AID insures 4 full milk supply during
summer droughts.
Fodder preserved In q concrete silo
h safe from fire and waste and retains
the maximum food value. The cost
Of building a silo with q capacity Of
t50 tons need not exceed $500. It va
ries according to the supply Of labor.
Concrete costs little more than wood
and Is 10 much better In every way
that It Ia confidently recommended.
No fodder is relished so much by stock
as silage. Its influence Is beneficial
to the animal system. Is invigorating
and prevents cripples and impaction.
Succulent silage makes for good health
and heavy milk dow. It Is equally
good for poultry and hogs.
Corn Is the most suitable Of all crops
for silage. It should be harvested
when the bottom leaves are drying of
and the grain IL doughy and glazing.
Without hurrying the work Of alling
the silo, the best method Is to ensile
the crop as soon as 1t Is harvested,
cutting the stalks and cobs into small
bits. The grain IL more or less
Grated in the cutter.
The fodder thus treated Ia carried by
means Of an elevator or blower. which,
should deliver the material az e the
center Of the silo Is possible. This
may be done by the aid Of q bag chute
attached to the mouth Of the elevator
or the blower.
The labor Of distributing the fodder
is thus minimized. and an ' supply
Of the material will be distributed all
over the silo. Il the fodder be al.
lowed to fall direct from the mouth
Of the conveyor the heaviest parts
will fall on one side and the lighter
parts on the other. The silage will
not settle evenly, and loss will even
tuate. To assist in close packing 1t
b absolutely essential to trample the
product all over the silo. Trampling
the sides or around the edges ID not
sufficient, for with the shrinking Of
the center the outer edges creep to-
ward 1t and away from the walls,
thus allowing access Of air and con
sequent loss. The center should al
ways be kept q little higher than the
cutter edges. The rate Of flling should
be ok to eight feet per day. Quicker
llling than this may result In gen.
Grating too much heat, In which case
the silage Is liable to decompose.
After the silo has been filed the
fodder should be covered with q light
framework or coarse sheet and weight
"a down. This IL done to keep out
air, and after the silo has been opened
for use In the spring or summer 1t is
6sst to replace this top covering after
each days supply is taken out. Avoid,
~ far as practicable. sinking holes In
the silage. In fact, keep Is little of
the silage exposed to the air az posi-
BE. i,
The daily ration Of silage for a dairy
COW IL from thirty to forty pounds
when fed with other folders: when
there Is some grass available thirty
pounds per day Is ample. Sheep will
sat % much as three pounds, a day.
Il II advisable to give horses small
quantities only Of silage; otherwise
there may be trouble from stomach
arrangements. Limit the amount fed
% u few pounds per day. Pigs and
poultry will eat small quantities.
0ilage may be made Of all plants that
animals are permitted to eat in the
green state. and such fodder preserved
BY this means loses but little Of its
feeding properties in the process. In
one way there is a slight improvement
That IL. the tougher 6ber Of sliced
fodder IL softened and made thereby
more digestible and acceptable to ami
mals.
However, there IL great risk in put
Inc vegetables in q silo II a dairy II
Kept. The milk IL apt to be tainted.
Oats, rye, millet and alfalfa work well
In connection with corn. but the latter
d the main staple and may be used
By itself. NJ