THE EARTH'S BOUNTY 



Many devices for covering the siloed fod- 

 der have been recommended and tried, with 

 varying success. The original method was to 

 put boards on top of the fodder, and to weight 

 them heavily by means of a foot layer of dirt 

 or sand or with stone. The weighting having 

 later on been done away with, lighter material, 

 as straw, hay, sawdust, etc., was substituted 

 for the stone or sand. Building paper was 

 often placed over the fodder, and boards on 

 top of the paper. There is no special advan- 

 tage derived from the use of building paper, 

 and it is now never used. Many farmers 

 run some corn stalks or green husked fodder 

 through the cutter after the fodder is all in. 

 In the South cotton-seed hulls are easily ob- 

 tained, and form a most efficient and cheap 

 cover. 



None of these materials, or any other recom- 

 mended for the purpose, can perfectly pre- 

 serve the uppermost layer of silage, some four 

 or six inches of the top layer being usually 

 spoilt. Occasionally this spoilt silage may not 



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