Rrjiort of the Bacteriologist, Si'C, in Dairying. 



887 



The advantages of tlie silo are such that the facility with which 

 the crop can be secured is just as important as the provision of gTeen 

 fodder for feeding in the dry season. At Colac two silos were built 

 when the oat crops were nearly ruined by cater])vllars. Alternate 

 loads of oats, and trefoil and clover were carted t«i the chaff'cutter, 

 and the i^esult has been one of the best sam])]es of silage ever 

 analysed. I append Dr. Howell's residts, with average American 

 analyses, for purpt)ses of comparison. 



Where maize or amber cane is grown it is admitted that the silo 

 is the only way to secure full feeding returns from the crop. With 

 surplus stacks of hay and straw on every farm throughout the 

 northern plains, it will be as well to make a few acres of next season's 

 crop into silage, if only as an insurance against future droughts. 

 But independently of this consideration, it must be recognised — first, 

 that the low price of produce enhances the relative value of live stock, 

 and secondly, that the stock-carrying capacity of every farm is limited 

 by its condition during the worst months of the year. Could the 

 state of the pastures which obtains in October be secured all the year 

 round, the amount of live stock could at once be safely doubled. The 

 modern silo places this within the reach of every farmer who will 

 take the trouble to grow sufficient crops for the purpose, and utilise 

 the surplus that is found in the northern pastures in the good years. 

 American experiments show that good silage will keep practically 

 unchanged for periods of eight or ten years, and probably for an. 

 indefinite time longer. It is safe from the influence of the weather 

 and from attacks of birds and mice. It may be made equally well in 

 wet or dry weather, and it is the only way in which the surplus 

 growth and weeds of the farm can be utilised, while it conduces to 

 keeping the land free of weeds and thistles, because seeds of all 

 kinds have their vitality absolutely destroyed by the moist heat of 

 the silo. Jjven after the grain is harvested, the straw or maize stalks 

 may be utilised by being moistened as they pass into the silo, or by 

 mixing them with green, juicy material, such as rape, tliistles, or 

 marshmallows. So long as the material passes through the chaff- 

 cutter it is certain that silage can be made of almost anything that 

 grows on the farm. The simple rule is to make the juiciness approxi- 

 mate to that in a crop of oats or wheat a few days before it is ready 

 to cut for hay. The question for the future is not whether it is 

 worth while making silage, but whether for home consumption it is 

 worth while making hay. 



With regard then to the coming season, I hold that in view of the 

 heavy stocks of hay and oats everywhere seen, it will be wise for all 

 farmers, whether dairying or not, to adopt the silo. It may be filled 



