A RECTANGULAR SILO. 



107 



A very cheap rectangular silo may be constructed by 

 erecting strong 3x10 studding around a bay or part of a 

 bay, and lining with one ply good matched lumber one- 

 inch thick. Such a silo has been in use at the Ottawa 

 Station for eight years, and has given good results. 



The main objection to rectangular or square silos is 

 that it is very difficult to make the corners perfectly tight, 

 so that air will not enter at these points and cause more 

 or less of the silage to spoil here. Even if carefully built, 

 the lateral pressure in a silo filled with green fodder is 

 often great enough to cause the boards to spring and thus 

 let air in, unless special precautions have been taken to 



Fig. 23. Corner of rectangular silo. (Wheeler.) 



prevent it. One way of avoiding this difficulty is to par- 

 tially round off the corners, by placing a square timber, 

 split diagonally, in each of the corners. Another plan 

 is to bevel the edge of a ten-inch plank and nail it in the 

 corners, filling in behind with dry dirt or sand. Sawdust 

 has been recommended, but should not be used, as it will 

 draw moisture and cause the plank and silo . lining to 

 decay. The space back of the plank may also be left 

 empty. 



The arrangement for making the corners of a square 

 or rectangular silo air-tight shown in Fig. 23 was published 

 by the Geneva Experiment Station. The corners are 

 boarded up, as shown in the figure, a sheeting of paper 



