764 IOWA DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 



experience on the subject, to be of much value, should be full and com- 

 plete — the whole truth — because a partial statement of facts in regard to 

 any matter may be as misleading as an absolute misstatement. 



Our experience with silage for cattle feeding purposes was begun in 

 1901, at which time we erected and filled three silos 26x42 feet, having 

 a capacity of about 550 to 600 tons each. This was followed the next 

 year by the erection of a cement silo 36x52 feet, which, according to the 

 rules usually applied to ascertain the capacity of silos of ordinary size, 

 should hold about 1,500 tons, but we have found that it actually holds 

 about 50 per cent more than all three of our other silos put together, 

 ■which, figured acording to the same rules, have the capacities above 

 given, so that our cement silo must hold something over 2,000 tons. The 

 contents of these silos have each year been fed to beef cattle. Our silage 

 has been made of ripe corn grown so as to make the largest possible yield 

 of grain and nearly ripe soy beans mixed in the silo in the proprotion of 

 about three-fourths of the former to to one-fourth of the latter. In con- 

 nection with the silage we have fed clover, alfalfa, and oats hay Early 

 in our experience we added ear corn, but sooh abandoned that and substi- 

 tuted cotton seed meal therefor, with much better and more satisfactoi^ 

 results. 



We find that cattle will eat of the kind of silage we have been making 

 about 50 pounds per day per hundred weight up to 1,000 pounds weight; 

 SO pounds per head per day being about the maximum amount which a 

 steer of any size will eat; that when one-half of a pound per hundred- 

 weight of cotton seed meal is sprinkled over the silage the cattle will eat 

 slightly above one-third of a pound per hundred weight per day of clover, 

 alfalfa, or oat hay, making for a 1,000-pound steer a ration of 50 pounds 

 silage, 5 poi:^ds cotton seed meal, and 4 pounds of hay, and for smaller 

 steers proportionate amounts less. In our later feeding operations we 

 have settled upon this kind of a ration for fattening cattle. Cattle which 

 are being carried as stockers we feed little or no cotton seed meal, and 

 they eat a larger proportion of clover hay, probably 50 per cent more. 

 Fifty pounds of corn and soy-bean silage, 5 pounds cotton seed meal, and 

 4 pounds clover or alfalfa hay for a 1,000-pound steer makes a ration 

 containing about 2.8 pounds protein, 13 punds carbohydrates, and 1.2 

 pounds fat, with a nutritive ratio of about 1 to 5.5. The standard ration 

 is: Protein, 2.51 pounds; carbohydrates, 15 pounds; and fat, 5 pounds. 

 Nutritive ratio about 1 to 6, so that it will be seen that the ration closely 

 approximates what is thought to be the actual requirements of the steer. 

 Whatever the correct theory may be we know from actual experience 

 that the above ration makes the cattle do better and makes more money 

 for the feed consumed than our former practice of feeding the cattle all 

 the shock corn they would eat with occasional allowances of clover hay, 

 or ear corn and clover hay. The steers with this ration, get about 15 

 pounds of grain per head per day, or about 1^2 pounds per hundred 

 weight for a 1,000-pound steer. Professor Henry states that about 12 

 pounds per day of grain is all a steer of any size can profitably utilize, 

 and he cites the fact that the best English and Scotch feeders use even 

 less than the amount of grain. We have found by pretty careful tests that 

 corn grown as we grow it for silage, that will yield fifty bushels of ears, 



