PRESERVATION FOR STOCK FOOD 763 



the silage will be fed rapidly enough to prevent decay. It chap. 

 should never be more than ten square feet per cow ; five is xv - 

 better, while seven and a half gives good results. The riper 

 the silage, the less weight the silo will hold. The higher the 

 silo and the greater the diameter, the more weight the silo will 

 hold. The weight and keeping quality will depend also upon 

 the manner of filling. . . . The more slowly the silo is filled, 

 the more it will hold. A silo 16 feet in diameter and 30 feet 

 high will hold, when continuously filled with suitably ripened 

 maize, 33-] to 40 lbs. of silage per cubic foot, or about 100 tons 

 of silage. A cubic foot of such silage is a standard daily 

 ration for a cow in milk. The capacity of the silo required 

 may be calculated in cubic feet by multiplying the number of 

 animals to be fed by the days of feeding desired " (Hunt, 1). 



The construction of modern silos is discussed in the follow- 

 ing chapter (XVI.). Some silos in South Africa have been 

 constructed of double walls of corrugated iron, well braced 

 and hooped together, and are reported as having been quite 

 successful. 



But at best the silo is an expensive item, and where other 

 and more imperative outlay is required on the farm, its con- 

 struction may well be left till a future time. In the climate 

 of South Africa, at least the greater part of which enjoys a 

 dry winter, excellent silage can be made either in a pit or in a 

 stack. 



741. The Stack Silo. — The stack silo is built up in the form 

 of a haystack (Fig. 238J of maize stalks not cut into lengths. 

 Several Transvaal farmers have made stack silage for years, 

 and find it an economical and easy method of preserving 

 winter feed. The principle to be followed in making stack 

 silage is to pack the maize stalks as closely and evenly as 

 possible, a small quantity at a time; four or five ox-wagon 

 loads per day are sufficient for a moderate stack. This is built 

 up to the required height (usually 10 or 12 feet), and when a 

 suitable temperature has been obtained the stack is weighted 

 down to prevent further increase of temperature. Some 

 farmers use a thick layer of veld hay, which gives the neces- 

 sary weight and can afterwards be used as bedding. In the 

 Bush-veld, where wood is plentiful, poles can be utilized; in 

 other places, bricks, stones, and even corrugated iron and soil 



