420 



MISSOURI AGRICULTURAL REPORT. 



Mr. Wm. Plummer, Hale, Mo., has two of these "Buff Jersey" silos 

 and is well pleased with them. One is i6 by 34 and the other is 20 by 

 34. See figure 20. 



Mr. John Miles, Grays Summit, Mo., has one 20 by 30, and is 

 pleased with it. See figure 15. 



Figure 15. Silo and bam on the farm of J. A. Miles, Gray's Summit, Mo. 



(Courtesy Rural World.) 



WHAT TO GROW FOR THE SILO. 



Corn. — For a silage crop corn comes first. It is by all means the 

 most important. It yields heavily and is relished by all farm animals. 

 Some experienced men prefer to plant thickly and not count on getting 

 ears, but the majority of the best men seem to prefer to plant the silo 

 corn the same as the field corn that is intended to mature grain. Plant as 

 large a variety as will mature before frost in your locality, then let it 

 get almost ripe. It should be cut when the grain is in the dry dough 

 stage, or just beginning to glaze or dent. Corn silage properly made 

 is fully as digestible as the dry fodder, and far more palatable. About 

 the only objection that could be raised to corn is the fact that this plant 

 is fattening in its tendencies and not a muscle and milk producing food, 

 or in other words, its nutritive ratio is wide, it being i to 14.4, 1. e. 

 J part of protein to 14.4 parts of carbohydrates and fat. To correct this 

 tendency, cow peas, soy beans and velvet beans are coming into favor. 



Cow peas are grown and put into the silo along with the corn. Cow 

 peas green have a nutritive value of i to 4.7, hence, by putting these into 

 the silo with corn the ratio may be brought down to i to 8 or 9, which is 

 about right for feeding steers and nearly low enough for dairy cows. 



