MOLDS IX CORN SILAGE 493 



one quart of corn silage, which had been sterilized and inoculated 

 with Monascus and which was vevy thickly covered with the my- 

 celium. Xo ill effects whatever were noted in either case. 



These findings confirm practical experience in feeding moldy 

 silage to cattle. It was reported by at least two of the farmers 

 who sent in samples of silage, which were in good condition ex- 

 cept for occasional clumps of moldy silage, that the cattle pre- 

 ferred to eat the moldy silage and would leave the good silage 

 untouched until they had eaten the moldy material. They re- 

 ported that they obser\"ed no ill effects. In most of the instances 

 where moldy silagre has been suspected in cases of ''poisoning" 

 of cattle reported to the Station, the cause has been found to be 

 some acutely infectious disease. In cases where the molding of 

 siJage, to which atmospheric air has had more or less access, has 

 progressed to the extent where the silage acids have been de- 

 stroyed and putrefactive bacteria have begun to grow in the ma- 

 terial, the need for caution in feeding is evident. In such cases 

 the possible harm done can not be considered as being due to the 

 mold but to the bacteria. Unpublished results by Grindley and 

 Eusk at the Illinois Station privately reported to the writer show, 

 however, that cattle are apparently resistant to the ill effects of 

 rather badly spoiled silage. It is evident, on the other hand, 

 that where spoiling by bacteria has begun, the possibilities of 

 contamination by very harmful organisms are present. It is 

 known that horses are ver^- susceptible to the bad effects of 

 spoiled silage. This "study is. however, concerned only with silage 

 on which mold grows in the absence of air and where further 

 spoiling has not taken place. Using reasonably large amounts of 

 material, it has been found that the two molds here studied are 

 not toxic to rabbits. 



Chemistry Section. 

 Iowa Agricultural Experiment Station. 



