128 THE STOCKFEEDER'S COMPANION 



down with a couple of men, and will then keep for two 

 years or even more. This silage has a much nicer ap- 

 pearance than silage made from grass in Great Britain. 



3. Chaffing. This term is applied to the cutting of 

 hay and straw into very short lengths by machinery. 

 The resulting chaff or chop is most useful for mixing 

 with pulped roots and concentrated foods. In this way 

 the hay and straw go much further, largely because there 

 is less wasted from the rack or " cratch." Hay of rather 

 inferior quality can be gradually worked off in this way. 



For fattening animals the mechanical energy 

 demanded from the body to chew, masticate, and pass 

 these bulky foods along the alimentary canal is 

 minimised when the hay and straw have been chaffed 

 in this way. The same thing applies to grinding 

 concentrated foods. 



4. Pulping, fingering, and slicing Roots. For young 

 stock as well as for mixing with chaffed hay and straw, 

 the roots must be reduced to small pieces by machinery. 

 Pulping cuts the roots into very small pieces, while 

 fingering cuts the roots into pieces like human fingers. 

 Slicing means cutting the roots into parallel slices of, 

 say, half-inch in thickness. Pulped roots are chiefly 

 used for mixing with chaffed hay and straw ; fingered 

 roots, although sometimes fed with chaff, are largely 

 used for sheep ; while sliced roots are fed to cattle 

 which are unable, on account of teething changes, to 

 eat or "break" whole roots. 



5. Grinding, Rolling, and Nutting. These terms 

 refer to different methods of bruising seeds, grain, or 

 cakes. Grinding reduces the food to a meal, while 

 rolling simply squeezes it out flat. Meal is preferable 

 for feeding with chaffed hay and straw. Rolled oats 

 are better fed to horses in the dry state. 



