STOCK FEEDING. , 17 



PART II. Silos and Silage. 



A silo is an air-tight receptacle for preserving green feeds in 

 a succulent condition. Feed thus preserved is known as silage. 

 Clover, cow-peas and other forage crops have been successfully 

 made into silage, but experience has shown that the cheapest 

 and most satisfactory silage is made from corn cut in the dent- 

 ing or glazing stage. 



Silage is now universally recognized as one of the cheapest 

 and most indispensable feeds in economical milk production. 

 With the studious dairyman, it is no longer a question of "can 

 I afford to build a silo," but "can I afford to be without one?" 



ADVANTAGES OF SILAGE. The advantages of feeding silage 

 may be briefly stated as follows : 



1. It furnishes the cheapest roughage available upon the 

 farm. 



2. It furnishes roughage, which, in degree of succulence and 

 palatability, more nearly approaches green pasturage than any- 

 thing else to be had upon the farm. 



3. Owing to its kinship to grass in succulence and palatability, 

 it can readily be substituted for the latter during periods of 

 drought and during late summer and fall when pasturage is 

 nearly always inadequate. 



4. It has made winter dairying a feasible and profitable busi- 

 ness, because the silage readily takes the place of summer pas- 

 turage. 



5. It furnishes a uniform feed and makes uniformly good 

 feeding a possibility the year round. 



6. It permits the storage of a large amount of feed in a com- 

 paratively small space. 



7. Where the silo adjoins the barn it makes feeding easy. 



8. It permits housing the corn crop regardless of the condi- 

 tion of the weather. 



9. There is practically no waste in feeding. 



10. It yields the largest amount of feed possible fron? the 

 corn plant. 



SIZE OF SILOS. The size of the silo is determined by the 

 number of cattle to be fed. In general, a cow will consume 

 about 40 pounds of silage daily ; and, if fed silage 180 days in 

 the year, she will consume a total of 7,200 pounds. At this rate 



