THIRD ANNUAL YEAR BOOK — PART VI. 238 



quite deep. Had I begun feeding earlier it would have been better. But 

 I had reasons for waiting. I wanted to test the silage and was letting my 

 cows go dry so as to see its effect. 



They had had no grain since last winter, and nothing bui clover hay 

 this winter. In fact, I had begun feeding hay in July, so they were on 

 dry feed six months before I opened the silo. They were going dry very 

 fast. They were as constipated as horses. They had no relish for hay 

 any longer. When I put silo before them they went at it greedily. Fed 

 moderately at first of course, but the second week they were getting all 

 they could eat twice a day, morning and night, with hay at noon. I tried 

 everything with it and all animals went at it without having to learn to 

 like it. The silage was sweet and nice. It made me hungry for a mes3 

 of greens to smell it. The brood sows get two feeds of silage and one 

 of corn and the fat hogs get two of silage and three of corn. They will 

 leave corn any time for silage. As a hog feed it has saved quite a corn 

 bill this winter — and I believe it is better for them to have both. 



In a few days the cows looked better and their bowels were more laxa- 

 tive. They increased on flow of milk as the three following examples will 

 show: First cow, a heifer milked six months: During the five weeks 

 before feeding clover silage this heifer gave a weekly flow of milk of 66.3, 

 77.8, 72.3, 71.7 and 67.2 pounds respectively. For the first five weeks on 

 elover silage her milk record was 74, 76.5, 77.1. 79.1 and 84.3 pounds for 

 each respective week. Second, an old cow milked five months, weekly 

 record before feeding silage, 85, 87.4, 81.7, 83,2 and 79.5 pounds. Record 

 after feeding silage, 86.3, 84.7, 84.3, 89.3 and 95.6 pounds for each suc- 

 ceeding week. Third, an old cow fresh four Aveeks before feeding silage. 

 Record for these four weeks in their order 138.6 (bred tis week), 117.7, 

 95.91 (bred again), and 97.9 pounds. For the five weeks following the 

 weekly milk record is 112.3. 118.9 (bred). 115.2, 114 and 120.4 pounds 

 respectively. 



These samples from the herd are sufficient to show the practical side 

 of silage feeding. The cows will go on grass in good condition. They 

 are not only holding out in the flow but gaining a little as the weather 

 gets warmer. The same cow did better last winter, but I fed bran, gluten 

 feed, oats, and corn and cob meal and fed heavily. There is no doubt 

 but that they would have done much better this winter had they received 

 grain with the silage, but at present prices I could not get myself to be- 

 lieve it would pay. Next winter I will feed grain of my own raising and 

 grinding and silage run through my own cutter, so I think it will be 

 cheaper. 



There is this to learn from my experience: Clover keeps better cut 

 up fine. If not cut it should be well packed and air excluded from the 

 top. Clover is not a hard keeper if the silo is a good one and clover is 

 cut fine. By the way, before getting my silo I figured in every way and 

 found that I could buy a factory made almost as cheaply as I could make 

 one — one that might be a failure as a money saver. It took two days for 

 two of us to set it up — and it cannot collapse. It is there to stay until 

 rotted out. 

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