Arizona republican. [volume] (Phoenix, Ariz.) 1890-1930, 1917-01-21
sIIos AND slIAGE


y dairyman of the Salt River valley
asks us for information concerning
pit silos and also concerning crops
for silage. He asks particularly re-
garding green oats, barley ana other
grains for silage purposes.
The pit silo is coming into more
general use in the dry farming dis
tricts of the state, particularly is this
true OF Cochise county. The pit silo
has the advantage of being cheaper
than any other form of silo. and re-
1uires less power to cut the siiage,
ana smaller clHter than an above
ground silo A very interesting bulle-
tin on the pit slo has been published
by the extension service of the Ari-
IONA College of agriculture. The bul-
etin was written by Mr.. A. l.. Paschal,
agricultural agent of Cochise county.
MrIaschal has collected the data on a
number of slOs in Cochise county
md gives the cost of constructing silos
of different depths. and diameters. ana
also the cost of cementing them
= Another type of underground silo,
On Ralph Murphy's farm, is described
N a recent issue Of the Southwestern
StOckman- Farmer, as follows:
Unlike most underground SiloS, this
Is not round or square. but is merely
long and comparatively shallow
trench. The length is about 100 feet.
width 20 feet and the excavation is
IA feet. The work of eXcavating was
practically all done with teams and
Fresno scrapers. The earth from the
excavation was thrown around the
edges forming an embankment about
four feet high. This eTnbankment
serves as a protection from water and
to some extent probably from gophers.
TIE trench lies north and south the
north end slopes from the bottom OF
the trench to the surface. Necessar
lily a rather steep grade, but not more
steep than many hills found on the
roads in our hill country.
In using the silage from this trench
sio the team is backed down the in
cline and the silage taken from the
end of the trench rather than the
top.
In filling, the cut forage is dropped
near the middle of the trench, and
. team of mules. hitched to a scraper
travel back and forth all the time the
silo is being filled The scraper drags
and sca:ters the silago, and the mules
pack is. so that by the time the silo
is fun which has of course taken a
/ matter Of ut least 4 week or ten days,
there is ne further settling.
The silage is covered with old hay,
/ straw etc 10 protect IT from the air
4 as mach as possible. There being in
I 4 silo Of this ldnd-an unusual amount
! Of snrfac" exposed. it is necessary to
protect the top more thorough, thar
! in 4 deep s;lo
$50 far this silo has give rlr t cX-
/ ceilent satisfaction. It WI hold VerT
/ close To 600 tens. and cost to cvca. a. "
about 500, making the cost per ton
! capacity about 50 cents
The underground silo in an irrigated
/ district should ne protected in some
wav to prevent water from getting
into t. There IS always the. danger
! that gophcrs will undermine and, fur
! nish 4 anaunel fCr water The farmer
/ in an irrigated district who contem-
! plates eXcaVatinS an underground SilO
1 should Keep this fact well in mind.
I and # ne is not able to guard against
possible flooding from irrigation water,
4 should consider only the above ground
( silo.
The one crop which has given the
most universal satisfaction in all parts
Of the country is Indian corn. There
are many substitutes which make very
satisfactory silage. Kafir. milo and
the sweet sorshums are all good
and make very fair silage A mixture
Of corn and sweet sorghum is good
ana will give very nearly equal feed
ing value 10 the straight corn silage
With the improved Mexican June, corn
or a it is known tie Sacaton Mexican
Tune, there is a reasonable certainty
hat the Crop will natures if planted
from tie fifteenth to the latter par
Of July, and it is not too much to ex-
meet Il yield of ten tons per acre il
he salt River Valley with good care
From = bulletin The Slo in Cali
fOrniH Agriculture" recently issued l.,
the California experiment station, W.
prote tho following regarding oats an,
other grains for slage:
Green oats. volunteer grain, ant
other cereal folders are occasional!
sliced when grown for forage or il
case they can not be, used for grain
They are cut when the kernels ar
past the milk stage and filled into thu
s 10 after having been run through
cutter. If the grain has become near
y ripe il is necessary to add conisder