152 AGRICULTURE OF MAINE). 



as rapidly as though they were tongiied and grooved or beveled 

 to give a larger bearing surface. After decay has started, the 

 hoops may be tightened each year, and the live wood of one 

 •stave brought against the live wood of another, making it as 

 tight as when first built. The hoops go through the timber in 

 '.the back as shown in the drawing, and also through the two 

 ■door posts. These timbers act as a lag on the hoops, and also 

 a support for them, so that as the silo shrinks, when empty, the 

 hoops will remain in .position. In the front where the two tim- 

 bers make the door posts it will be necessary to put a truss 

 across the doorway every four feet, to prevent the silo spread- 

 ing at this point. 



The door boards are held in place by bolting two 2x2 joists 

 wp and down these posts two inches apart, as shown in drawing 

 at H and N, or better still, by cutting a 2 x 2 inch groove into 

 each of the posts the whole length. 



The doors are made by taking two one-inch boards and nail- 

 ing them firmly together. Let one board lap by the other some 

 fixed distance, say two inches, and let every pair of boards that 

 >ou nail together lap by the same amount, as shown in the 

 drawing "L." Then it makes no difference how wide these 

 boards are, or in what order you use them, they will always fit 

 the next pair below, as shown by "L." "S." These boards can 

 be slid down this groove, and in that way form a continuous 

 door, and one that will be tight, for the boards are held together 

 l3y the pressure of the silage and there is no air leak between 

 them. To my mind, and from observation of silo construction, 

 a silo built in this way will meet the demands of a greater per- 

 centage of farmers than any other type constructed in the State 

 today. 



siIvAGe; crops f'or maine;. 



The dififerent crops which may be used for silage are corn, 

 wheat, rye, peas and oats, millet and clover. There are men in 

 this audience, I believe, that have used each one of these crops 

 successfully. The corn should be the entire plant, sufficiently 

 matured so that the kernels are in the glazing stage, as this 

 gives a much more nutritive silage than corn cut more imma- 

 ture. Dr. Jordan of the Maine Experiment Station found that 

 a hundred pounds of corn silage from the mature plant had a 



