The gazette-times. [volume] (Heppner, Or.) 1912-1925, 1915-02-04


all the machinery 1t has been pretty
big job. The greatest difficulty |
nave found Is in obtaining labor in
hlling. While We exchange help,
still We must hire some men and it
generally comes in a very busy sea-
son.
l have had some difficulty in a
small amount of silage spelling. At
the door l used tar paper last year,
which was not quite satisfactory.
am trying to overcome the trouble
this year by using a prepared roof
Ing. The most amusing part was
the knockers when | first talked of
putting up a silo. One well-to-do
farmer said to me: "If l were you,
Fred, l would not build a silo, as
silage will sour the land"
Another neighbor thought 1t would
wear out the land. Still he would
cut up his fodder and feed it out in
the corral, and of course he could
not haul out the manure with long
stalks in it. Still others said that
the acid in the silage would decay
the cows teeth. have not examined
my cows teeth, but still they seem to
eat as well as ever. Maybe here is
new field for dentist. | fill my
SO-ton silo from 7h acres of pretty
good corn as such a crop is considered
here in Colorado.
Convenience of Feeding.
This amount Of silage is, of course,
only patching as compared with
the 10000 tons the Windsor farm
used to put up, but 1t is enough for
my purposes for 1t feeds from 16 to
20 head during a period of six
months and 1t Is very palatable feed
at that. The convenience of feeding
is worth all that the silo cost in the
first place. l do all my feeding with
out leaving the stable, and then
silage is much easier handled than
even hay, let alone fodder, which
must be fed outside. Just last week
was talking with a neighbor and
he was complaining about the ter
rors of the snow and ice on his fod-
der as occurred last Winter when the
Dig STORM came.
He said he could not haul it at all
and had to give 1t up. The fodder
shocks were all blown over and
buried in the snow. This may be
one reason why the boys leave the
ranch and the old man, too, for that
matter. Ordinarily one man can
throw down ensilage and feed 1t to
40 cows in about half an hour, while
it would take two men one hour and
half to hitch up and 60 to the field,
get the fodder and feed it to the same
number. Silage, as everyone knows,
is a canned grain or forage crop.
Silo Length.
It is put In the silo green, cut in
lengths varying from one-fourth to
ree-fourths of an inch, but usually
about one-half inch. The shorter
lengths pack closer and therefore
keep a little better. But it makes
the filling slower, so taking labor
into consideration, the one-half inch
length strikes about the happy med
ium, although l notice that most OF
1t is cut to three-quarter length.
Now, as | said, silage Is made OF
a grain or forage crop, Indian corn
first, kafir or milo second, and cane
or sorghum third. A crop that is
high in starch and carbohydrates is
better than one that is high in pro.
tein, especially when it is to be fed
in connection with alfalfa hay
Sliced protein gives off a rather Of
fensiye odor. We must continue tt
DE beef and dairy product eating
nation.
How many acres does it take tt
keep one cow five or six months or
the average pasture? About three
or az acres, which would be at the
rate of six or seven acres year
or for 2Is years it would be 10 tt
17is acres.
Now take calf at weaving tint
and feed 1t ensilage and alfalfa ha.
for 21s years, we will say, 1t viii
eat 80 pounds of silage day, whicl
think Is high enough. In 2la year
it will eat 27,375 pounds of silag'
and 10 tons Of hay. The feed tha
will grow in one season on l Il
acres of corn and two-thirds OF al
acre of alfalfa, or two acres one sea
son. will make 1900 or 14OO
pound steer or heifer.
Solving High Cost of Living.
Now compare two acres with 10 Z
l7ik acres, the difference of pastur
land and titled land with a good sill
to help, and we find a difference o
c. Ill 9