Jan. 3, 1921 



Sugar Beet Top Silage 



54i 



Table III. — Acidity of 100 gm. sugar beet top silage containing moisture 



Sample No. 



Total 

 acids. 



5 

 6 

 7 

 8 

 9 



Gm. 

 1-83 



1.28 

 •57 



3-6o 

 •58 

 .80 



1.06 



Table IV. — Acidity of 100 gm. sugar beet top silage on dry basis 



Sample No. 



Total 

 acids. 



Gm. 



5-23 

 1. 14 

 11.80 

 1. 91 

 2.6s 

 4.96 



In the samples of sugar beet top silage, sample 8 is the only one that 

 contains the same acids that are found in corn silage. This silage was 

 classed as a fair quality of silage by experts when it was sent to this 

 station. The remaining samples of silage all contained some butyric 

 acid. The quality of- the silage ranged from fair to poor, depending 

 chiefly upon the amount of dirt that was in the silage. While the 

 amount of butyric acid present indicates in a degree the type of fermen- 

 tation, it does not seem to prevent stock from eating the silage. Some 

 samples contained butyric acid in quantities that made drying the mate- 

 rial in an oven very unpleasant unless the process was carried on under a 

 hood, and yet cattle ate the silage with relish. It is not known how 

 much effect the abnormal fermentation has on the feeding value of 

 silage, but no doubt some loss occurs. Such losses could be greatly re- 

 duced by carefully packing the beet tops when siloing and by covering 

 the tops in such manner that all the air is excluded. 



The mere presence of butyric acid in silage is not in itself harmful, but 

 it is the fact that the presence of butyric acid indicates an abnormal fer- 

 mentation, resulting in a partial decomposition of silage, which tends 

 to lower its feeding value. 



It is hardly to be expected that beet tops can be packed sufficiently 

 to exclude all air, because of the nature of the tops, but possibly cutting 

 the tops in a silage cutter would solve the problem. Experiments are 

 planned for the coming year to determine the best n_ethods of siloing 

 sugar beet tops. 



