FARM MANAGEMENT 139 



air circulates in this space and also upon how much conducting 

 material is required to tie the outer and inner walls together. The 

 King and Gurler silos were among the first to make use of an air 

 space to prevent the loss of heat through the walls, but the air 

 spaces were so deep that circulation of air from the top to the bot- 

 tom of the wall was quite free and readily transmitted heat from wall 

 to wall in this manner. 



Location of the Silo. This will depend largely on the charac- 

 ter of stock to be fed. It is not always an advantage to build the 

 silo on the inside of the barn. In a dairy barn it is better to have 

 it on the outside, though joined directly to it. By keeping closed 

 the door leading to the barn, the odor of the silage can be kept out 

 of the stable and prevented from getting into the milk. It is as 

 easy to distribute the silage by means of a car to two rows of cattle 

 when located just outside the barn as when built in the corner of 

 the barn. In a beef -cattle barn the odor would not count for any- 

 thing, and if a large number of animals are to be fed it is well to 

 locate the silo in the center of a shed-like structure, which can be 

 utilized with economy in the winter feeding of beef cattle. The 

 great advantage of building the silo outside the barn is due to the 

 fact that the round silo is me preferable type to use. When one is 

 building a barn it is a different problem, as a round silo can often 

 be located in the center to advantage, whereas, after the barn is 

 erected, it could not be built except with an unnecessary outlay of 

 labor and expense. Unless the barn is a round one it is best to build 

 the silo at one end of the barn. The silo may be made an orna- 

 ment to any group of farm buildings. Its form is such that it may 

 be made to add to the appearance of any style of construction. One 

 or more conical silo roofs when viewed from a distance; or the full 

 height of the curved walls at a closer range, gives a very pleasing 

 effect when placed in a setting of rectangular buildings. This im- 

 pression is entirely independent of the great value of silage as a 

 feed and is pleasing to such a degree that a prospective purchaser, in 

 making a close decision, would be influenced to a far greater extent 

 than the original cost of the .silo. 



Filling the Silo. For best results forage which is put into a 

 silo should be cut fairly fine so that it will pack close and exclude 

 the air as much as possible. This material can be conveyed into 

 the silo by means of an elevator or conveyor. There are a few fa- 

 vored sections that can locate the silo so that it may be filled from 

 the cutter by gravity. The silo may be filled with uncut forage, 

 but this is not advisable if 'cutting machinery can be procured, as 

 the silo will not hold as much and the material in its natural shape 

 will not pack tight enough to keep as well as when cut. If the 

 amount of silage to be put up will not warrant a farmer in owning 

 a cutting outfit they can usually be hired in most neighborhoods 

 upon about the same basis as a threshing machine. The silo may 

 be filled all at once or gradually from day to day as may suit the 

 owner's convenience. In slow filling the work should be done at 

 least rapidly enough to prevent any mold from forming at the sur- 



