276 



ELEMENTS OF FARM PRACTICE 



silage insures one against a shortage of feed in winter or 

 summer. Silage is often fed in summer to help out when 

 pastures are short. 



Kinds of Silos,— There are a great many kinds of silos. 

 They may be built of concrete, of brick or lumber. There 

 are agents in nearly every community who are advocating 

 their particular kinds of silos. They quite often claim that 

 other makes of silos than their own are not good. Many 



Experiment Stations, as well 

 as farmers, have used all the 

 common kinds of silos. When 

 well made, they all have proved 

 to be good. Good workman- 

 ship is necessary in a silo, be- 

 cause it must be air-tight, 

 water-tight, have smooth walls, 

 and be strong enough to with- 

 stand great pressure from the 

 silage, and also be able to with- 

 stand the wind. Any silo that 

 has these qualities will be found 

 very satisfactory whether built 

 of brick, wood or concrete. 



Cost of Silos. — The most 

 common size of silo is one that 

 will hold about 100 tons of 

 silage. Such a silo will usually 

 vary in cost from $200 to $500, 

 depending quite largely on the 

 materials used and the prices 

 of materials and labor in the community. If a farmer buys 

 .£i silo from a company making a business of selling silos he will 

 pay more for it thaw if he were to buy the materials and hire 

 the building don«, as is usually the case with other farm 

 buildings. In other words, he can get a silo more cheaply 

 by building it himself, because he saves the expense the 

 silo company naust stand in advertising and selling their 

 silo; but for the extra money he pays for a patented silo, 

 he is saved the bother of planning and is quite likely to get 

 ja. good silo, because th^e silo company has usually built 



Figure 122. — A caaorejte biock sjlo. 



