TliK UU1.1.KT1N, 37 



hoop must be in two pieces, making each Imlt about !) iMcbcs longer than one- 

 half the vnlaide ciicunifeicnee of tlic tub. Thi.s extra ii inclirs in length is neces- 

 sary, because tlie ends of these rods are to pass through the holes bored through 

 the 4x(i pieces, and as an end conies from each direction they will pass onq 

 another in the timber and must extend tlirough far enough to receive a half-inch 

 cast-iron washer and a nut. When the 4x0 pieces are up and stayed, put in the 

 lower and upper hoops — working from ladder — then set in two or three staves 

 around on the circle to hold the uj)per hoop up. 8t,aple the hoops to these staves, 

 then nil in the balance of the circle with the balance of the staves, driving them 

 up tight and nailing with 10-penny nails. Your silo is then complete, except for 

 sawing out the doors. 



In emptying a silo it is necessary to feed ofT on a level all the way down, begin- 

 ning at the top; and you will need about four doors at intervals up one side. 

 Before sawing out the doors take some pieces of 2x4-inch stufT, cut in the length 

 you want your doors in width, hollow one side of these pieces out so that they 

 will conform to the curve of the silo, then nail two of them on at each point where 

 you want a door. Now saw out the doors (about 18x24 inches in size), and saw 

 on a slant on each of the four sides of each door, so that when done they will be 

 about four inches longer and wider on the inside than on the outside, so that the 

 pressure of the silage from the inside will hold them in place and will not push 

 them out. When filling, before putting in the doors tack a strip of building 

 paper around each edge. This will exclude all air that might otherwise penetrate 

 between the rough edges of the doors. 



We use no roof on our silos in the South. Have tested the matter thoroughly 

 and find there is less depth of mould on top of a tub of silage exposed directly to 

 the weather than in one covered. Another advantage with the oi>en-top silo is 

 that when the tub is filled nearly to the top of the staves we can nail up short 

 pieces of board 4 or 5 feet long inside the staves, letting the pieces extend above 

 the top of the staves 3 or 4 feet. Then stretch a piece oi poultry netting or a 

 strip of canvas around the inside of these pieces, raising in this way the height 

 of the silo that much. Tlien fill right up to the top of this temporaiy structure, 

 and when the silage settles it will be about even with the top of the staves, 

 increasing the capacity by several tons. A feed-cutter with mnd or chain carrier 

 elevator is necessary to cut and elevate the product to the top of the silo, and I 

 always advocate the purchase of a machine of not less than 18-inch throat. With 

 one of these machines 8 to 10 tons of corn may be cut per hour. 



Always, when possible, grow your silage near the silo, as a long haul adds 

 greatly to the cost of harvesting the crop. Never dig down into the ground a 

 foot when building a silo. Silage is heavy feed and should never be pitched up 

 hill out of a silo. Let the shucks of your corn get brown before harvesting for 

 silage and you will have a sweet, nutritious food, while if you cut it green it will 

 be a sour, unpalatable jiiass. 



A silo 16 feet in diameter and 24 feet high will provide silage enough for 

 twenty head of grown cattle for six months; and this amount of feed can be 

 grown on ten acres of well-prepared land in North Carolina at a cost of $126, 

 including every expense of growing and harvesting, also interest on land at $25 

 per acre and interest on cost of the silo. Good serviceable silos may be built at 

 less than $1 per ton capacity. Clay is as good a bottom as a silo can have. 



