THIRD ANNUAL YEAR BOOK — PART IX. 495 



40 lbs. Silage, 



10 " Mixed clover and timothy hay, 

 4 " Bran, 

 4 " Oats, 

 1 lb. Oil meal. 



As part of the winter ration for domestic animals it is the best substi- 

 tute for roots we have ever tried. It is only within recent years that canned 

 fruits and vegetables have become so great a part of our table diet. It is 

 a misfortune to the dairymen of our state that so few realize the advantage 

 of succulent food for winter use. 



The objection formerly offered to silage as a feed for. dairy cows 

 on account of tainting the milk is practically a thing of the past. At 

 the test made at the Illinois Experiment Station it was shown that out 

 of 220 persons who were given silage and non-silage milk 118 prefered 

 silage, sixty-five non-silage, and thirty-seven had no choice. 



Experiments show that the use of any feed that is apt to taint the milk 

 is much more liable to do so if fed an hour before milking than several 

 hours after. Spoiled ensilage had better be fed to hogs or young stock. 

 Freezing does not seriously damage silage but it is not well to feed it 

 while frozen. Silage may be carried from one year to another without 

 loss. If we discontinue its use in the spring, the top becomes covered 

 with mold for a few inches until the air is excluded. In case this is left 

 untn filling time the next fall the top should be taken off. It is not often 

 that the conditions are such about a well kept dairy farm that any degree 

 of cleanliness can be maintained in feeding shocked corn to the cows and 

 permitting hogs to follow them. Even if shocked corn were as good a 

 feed for the cow as ensilage there would be a loss of sixteen per cent 

 in feeding it without the hog, while the loss is reduced to two per cent 

 by the use of ensilage. 



This is accounted for from the fact that silage is a pre-digested food. 

 We are told that about 200 creameries have been closed in Iowa within 

 the last year for lack of patronage. 



Had silos been more numerous among our dairymen and farmers 

 this would not have been the case. Another reason for this, is the poor 

 class of dairy cows in Iowa. The steer question has had too much con- 

 sideration in the dairy, and too many cows are kept that are not in any 

 sense of the term profitable dairy cows. 



We can all profit by the more intelligent use of the feeds at our 

 command. There are many of us who would not think of getting the best 

 results without feeding a lot of steers about all they can eat. 



How many of us treat our cows that way? They should be fed up 

 to their full capacity. A silo will help cheapen the cows ration and 

 make her so profitable that even the hired hand may be induced to milk 

 her. I put in ten acres of alfalfa last year and have a most excellent 

 prospect. If this can be successfully grown in central and northern Iowa, 

 we shall be able to produce milk at a minimum cost. 



As our lands advance in price our farms are sure to grow smaller. 

 More cattle can be kept on a given area with a silo than is otherwise 

 the case. 



