CHAPTER XIX 



SILOS IN STONE AND BRICK 



Few events are wholly evil, and a good effect of recent droughts is the 

 awakening to a fuller appreciation of the benefits to be derived from the 

 making of ensilage which they have caused. 



With its help the stock farmer can snap his fingers at drought, and, 

 further, the number of head of stock which his farm can carry is no 

 longer limited to that which can be sustained on his winter or dry season 

 veld. 



This chapter is intended to guide the farmer in the construction 

 of a silo, and to furnish him with detailed plans for a square silo in 

 stone or brick, this being the type most likely to be built by a farmer 

 in this country. 



The conditions essential for preserving ensilage are, according to 

 King, " close packing in an air-tight structure when the materials have 

 reached the right stage of maturity." 



Main Types. — Silos may be classified into two principal types : — 



(a) Silos which are entirely below the surface of the ground, and 



which may be either unlined, or lined with brick, masonry, 

 corrugated iron, etc. 



These are closed by a layer of earth placed on top of the 

 silage. 



(b) Silos which are mainly above the ground. 



For convenience these two types will be referred to as " pit " and 

 " tower " silos respectively. 



Depth of the Silo. — The narrower and deeper a silo can be made 

 within practicable limits the better, on account of the close packing of 

 the silage due to the large superincumbent weight, the effects of which 

 are: — 



1. Leakage of air between the walls of the silo and the silage is less 

 likely to occur. 



