STORING 99 



the stack was 12.4 per cent, while the loss in hay stored in 

 the barn was about 2.5 per cent. If we add to this the 

 stacked hay lost by exposure, it will easily reach morethan 

 20 per cent under average conditions while in many cases 

 it would reach 40 per cent. This certainly represents an 

 enormous waste, and by preventing it a man with any 

 considerable area of alfalfa could soon save enough to 

 pay for a barn, 



THE HAY SHED 



After a barn the next best place for storing hay is a 

 shed with an adjustable or lifting roof. The ground 

 dimensions should be ample to allow the first cutting to 

 cover its floor and not be over five or possibly six feet 

 deep when first put in. The bottom of the mow should be 

 raised at least one foot from the ground, and the floor 

 should have at least a twelve-inch air space about every 

 three feet. Poles or joists covered with dry straw or old 

 hay make a good floor. Spread the hay over the entire 

 floor surface, on a layer of straw or other dry material. 

 Use barrels or boxes as recommended for ventilation in 

 the barn, and lower the roof until the second cutting. For 

 such a roof the covering should be of some such mate- 

 rial as ruberoid, and the rafters need not be he^vy, except 

 about every sixteen feet. Strong iron clamps can be 

 easily adjusted to the supports. When the second cut- 

 ting is ready, raise the roof, which should be in sections, 

 and put the second crop on top of the first. Follow this 

 plan for all other cuttings. If a shed with a stationary 

 roof is used, dry straw, or hay, or corn stover should be 



