30 Bureau or Farmers' Institutes. 



ordinary cut ensilage into a silo. But if the ensilage is cut as short 

 [r. Wo . cuts his, I see no advantage in the shredder over 



the cutter. But whichever you use get power enough. "We use a 

 12-horse engine when shredding ensilage. 



Question. — Will the cow get any more nutrition from cut or 

 shredded cornstalks than from whole stalks? 



Mr. Look. — I should cut or shred cornstalks, for the purpose 

 of making them more palatable, not to make them of more feed- 

 ing value, because the cutting or shredding of them w T ill not add 

 to their feeding value. 



Question. — What is the best length to cut ensilage ? 



Answer. — Two or three farmers voted for half-inch lengths, but 

 one farmer favored an inch. 



Question. — In what proportion shall we compare corn ensilage 

 with good stock hay? 



Dr. Smead. — What does stock hay mean? 



Mr. Cook. — About one-third clover and two-thirds timothy will 

 be the average. 



Mr. Litchard. — Three tons of ensilage to one of good hay. 



Dr. Smead. — Ensilage is a food that cannot be sold bv the 

 barrel or sack, so that it is quite difficult to determine its market 

 value. 



Mr. Snell. — My cow t s have done better on early cut clover and 

 timothy hay than on ensilage, but the ensilage was of sweet corn 

 with the ears picked off. I have two silos which I have filled tw T o or 

 three years, and have yet to find any benefit from the ensilage over 

 the hay. 



Mr. Cook.- — We cannot compare corn ensilage with clover hay. 



The two are as wide apart as are the poles. Clover is a protein, 



ilage a starch food, but both are needed to balance a ration. 



There is no crop from which we can get so much sugar and starch 



as from good, well-matured ensilage. 



Question. — Should ensilage corn that is quite green be allowed 

 to wilt for a day or so after cutting, before putting it into the silo? 



Mr. Cook. — Yes, if very green: but should not be allowed to 



v. Last year our corn was a little too dry. This sea- 



by following the reaper pretty close with the wagon, we had 



mois no gh. But it is a very close thing to determine just 



how much moisture the corn should have. If it becomes too dry 



Id be wet when it goes over the carrier and into the silo. 



Dr. Smead. — To the early days of ensilage, much loss was oxpe- 

 ced from putting the corn into the silo in an immature stage. 



