PROGRESSIVE BEEF CATTLE RAISING 



to $7.50 a ton, depending on investment in silo and 

 machinery and labor conditions), it can be made available 

 for any season of the year, less of the feed value is wasted, 

 it is eaten with practically no waste, the weather handi- 

 caps the making of silage less than putting the crop up 

 in any other form, it makes weeds available for feed if 

 mixed with the silage crop, and it can be stored in less 

 space than the same feed dry, in the ratio of 2 to 5 as 

 far as food value is concerned. 



The requisites of a good silo are: 

 Requisites of i airtight walls; 2 cylindrical shape 

 a Good Silo (to prevent corners which fill improp- 



erly) ; 3 smooth, strong, perpendicular 

 walls (to prevent air pockets) ; and 4 depth (to give 

 pressure on the mass of fermenting feed, to reduce the 

 percentage loss through fermentation of top layers before 

 they can be fed, and to reduce the loss of food nutrients, 

 which are greatest in upper part) . Silos may be made of 

 staves, brick, hollow tile, concrete, stone or steel. Pit 

 silos with cement lining and concrete curb may be used 

 in arid and semi-arid climates, but the material used 

 anywhere for structure depends upon local conditions. 

 See illustration opposite page 42. 



The diameter of a silo to be erected 

 Silo should be determined from the number 



Capacities of animals to be fed, the idea being 



to feed about two inches of silage off 

 the top to prevent spoilage. The minimum amount to be 

 fed daily, to attain this depth of feeding, is shown in the 

 following table, allowing twenty-five pounds per head: 



Diameter of Silo Minimum Amount of Silage Number Head 



10 feet 520 pounds 21 



11 feet 625 pounds 25 

 '12 feet 745 pounds 30 



14 feet 1,015 pounds 41 



1 6 feet 1,325 pounds 53 



Page Thirty-two 



