FOURTEENTH ANNUAL YEAR BOOK— PART VIII. 589 



securing but half the value of our crop. In other words, if the farmer has 

 fifty acres of corn worth $20.00 per acre, for the ear alone he secures 

 $1,000 worth of grain or 60' per cent of the crop. He leaves the other 

 40 per cent or $666.00 worth in the field. Of course it would be impos- 

 sible for all of the corn to be placed in the silo, but if only 25 per cent 

 was made into ensilage it would mean a great deal to the farmers of the 

 United States. 



By doubling the feeding value of the corn plant we are enabled to 

 double the number of animals which can be fed from that crop. The 

 writer knows of a farm in northern Iowa where it was difflcult to keep 

 twenty cows. A silo was constructed and two years later forty cows 

 were being kept on the same area of land at a good profit. By raising 

 twice as many cattle, it means the consumption of twice as much food on 

 the farm. It means that the grain is not being sold as formerly and 

 that the fertilizing elements are remaining on the farm to enrich the 

 land. 



Another important factor is the reduction in storage space of silage 

 compared to that required by hay. We find that one ton^ of clover hay 

 occupies 400 cubic feet, while eight tons of silage may be placed in the 

 same place. Clover hay contains 886 pounds of digestible nutrients per 

 ton and eight tons of silage contains 2,064 pounds; in other words, 

 corn silage occupying the same space as clover hay furnishes storage for 

 two and one-half times- the digestible nutrients. 



Silage as a milk producer compares very favorably with the other 

 more concentrated and more expensive feeds. It is a very palatable, suc- 

 culent food and in this respect can well be called the substitute for 

 pasture. We are all aware of the increased milk flow when cows are 

 turned to pasture in the spring, after receiving nothing but dry feeds 

 for six months. The milk cow is a sensitive animal at hard work and 

 therefore should be provided with the best food possible. The succulents 

 furnished by silage acts as a spur to the appetite of the cow and causes 

 her to relish her food in winter as well as in summer. 



The amount of silage necessary for twenty cows for 240 days, allowing 

 an average feed of forty pounds to each cow per day, would be ninety- 

 six tons. The average yield of silage corn per acre in the corn belt is 

 ten tons. At this rate ten acres of corn would furnish us a sufficient 

 amount. The United States Department of Agriculture estimates the 

 average cost of raising an acre of corn to be $11.07, and reliable author- 

 ities figure the cost of putting corn into a silo to average about 75 

 cents per ton. Then we may arrive at the actual cost of feed as follows: 



The cost of silage for 20 cows, 240 days $182.70 



Cost per cow per day .38 



At the Ohio station several years ago, the substitution of silage for 

 grain in the ration proved very successful. Silage was used to take the 



