SEED IMPROVEMENT MEETING. 235 



is hard and firm, a footing 2 feet wide by i foot deep will be 

 sufficient to support the weight of the walls; but if the soil is 

 soft or loose, it may be necessary to make a footing 3 or 4 

 feet wide. If a chute is to be used, a footing should be pro- 

 vided for it when the foundation for the walls is being put in. 



Unless good drainage is natural to the location^ tile should 

 be laid to conduct the water away from the foundation of the 

 silo. It may be necessary to put cinders, 3 in. to 6 in. deep, 

 under the floor, in order that the water which seeps under the 

 silo may reach the tile laid around the outside of the founda- 

 tion. 



FORMS. 



If a heavy clay soil, a form will not be required for a founda- 

 tion, but if the soil is somewhat light, it may be necessary to use 

 heavy building paper or tarred paper to line the trenches ; if 

 the soil is still lighter and has a tendency to cave in, boards 

 will need to be bent around some stakes to serve as forms. A 

 satisfactory mixture for foundation is one sack of cement to 

 three cubic feet of coarse, sharp sand, to five cubic feet of 

 screened gravel. 



FEOORS. ' 



The floor may be made of the same mixture as the founda- 

 tion. If the silo is likely to be filled with immature crops or 

 crops containing a large amount of water, as refuse from a pea 

 cannery, it would be necessary to provide for a drain, which 

 should be laid at this time. This drain should have a trap in 

 it so that air will not come up through it to allow decomposi- 

 tion of the silage. It should be provided on top with a screen 

 so that the silage will not go down through. 



A floor is not really a necessity, provided the soil is well 

 drained and rats do not burrow through to get into the silage. 

 A floor cleans easier than the earth, and will care for the two 

 above-mentioned troubles. A floor 5 in. thick, with a pitch of 

 1-4 in. to I in., gives good satisfaction. The floor supports the 

 great weight of the silage, but this weight is evenly distributed, 

 so that a heavier floor is not required. 



