328 Temperature atfecting the Quality of Silage 



lodged but not badly laid, was cut on July 16th and 17th in dull weather, 

 a quarter of an inch of rain fell on each of July l~th and 18th and inter- 

 fered with the coinmencement of filling on the hitter day. Filling had 

 to be stopped on -hily 19th, when the silage cutter broke down. 



The percentage of moisture in the green crop as filled to the silo 

 varied from 70-3 per cent, at the bottom when the crop though wilted 

 contained some added rainwater, to only 64-6 per cent, at the top when 

 the crop was wilted and dry. 



The following table gives a record of the daily temperature readings 

 on the centigrade scale for ten days after filling, and subsequently at 

 longer intervals of time. 



Table I. imi cwf. 



Except on July "2()tli. when the reading was made at 9 a.m., the 

 thermometer readings were taken at or near 5 p.m. After July 29th in 

 the case of the (i ins. depth and August .")th in the case of the 2 ft. depth, 

 readings ceased to be taken because it was impossible to ascertain the 

 corresponding depth, and moreover temperature changes were only those 

 due to cooling. 



When the silo was opened on November r2th and subsequent days 

 it was found that the level at which the (J in. temperatures had been 

 taken consisted of s])oilt mouldy material from which much of the 

 moisture had been driven out by the heat. The range of temperature 

 therefore of 60° to 65° corresponded with moulding of the silage. 



The silage taken from the 2 ft. depth, where the temperature rose 

 to 49° C, had a uniform dark brown colour with a characteristic ''sweet" 

 pleasant smell similar to that of an overheated hay stack, and was evi- 

 dently comparable to the '"sweet" silage described by Fry in earlier days. 



