746 IOWA DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 



as the inside sheeting. This was done by using three thicknesses and 

 breaking joints, thus making a strong six-inch hoop li^ inches thick. 

 Seven of these were placed around the silo between the doors to make 

 a continuous even surface on which to nail the sheeting. The silo was 

 sheeted up and down with common 1x12 barn boards 14 and 16 feet long, 

 and the cracks were covered with common three-inch battens. 



Some silos are sheeted on the outside with the same half-inch lum- 

 ber as is used on the inside, having the edges cut to a bevel so that the 

 cracks slant outward and downward. The same difficulties are encoun- 

 tered here, however, as were mentioned above and such siding is not 

 perfectly water tight as the rain may drive in between the cracks 

 When the siding is put on horizontally it should be carried up as fast 

 as the ceiling inside, thus obvaiting the necessity of building staging 

 ■on the outside. 



After the silo wall was completed a conical shingled roof was put 

 on, a chute built over the doors through which the silage is thrown 

 down, and the small space between the silo and the barn roofed over, 

 connecting the two. The silo was then completed ready for painting. 

 (Cut 21.) 



The silo has been filled twice and both years the silage has kept 

 perfectly from the bottom to the top, even next the wall and against 

 the doors. As before mentioned the top of the brick wall cracked, as it 

 was not reinforced, and the silage spoiled slightly at this place, but this 

 can easily be remedied another year. 



In the spring of 1904 when the cows were turned out to pasture, 

 about seven feet of silage remained in the silo. The small silo for sum- 

 mer feeding was then opened and the rotten silage from the top of the 

 small silo was distributed over the good silage in the large silo to the 

 depth of about six inches. This was thoroughly soaked and tramped 

 firmly. When ready to fill again in the fall there were about eight 

 inches of rotten silage to remove, only two inches of good silage 

 having spoiled. Fresh corn was run on the top of this and the whole 

 kept perfectly. When feeding out, scarcely any trace of spoiled silage 

 was to be found at the union of the silage of the different years. 



The cost of this, silo, tohich teas 20 feet in diameter and 34% feet 

 ■deep, holding 228 tons, was $383.00 or $1.68 per ton capacity. 



