70 Twenty-First Biennial Report 



and cobs of the com plant when in the silo stage is 

 practically the same in quality and quantity as that of 

 the grain on the plant. Stated in a different way, the 

 grain grown on the plant in Kentucky is sixty millions 

 of dollars per annum, and the feeding value of the plant 

 other than the grain is approximately sixty millions of 

 dollars. Anyone familiar with the methods of handling 

 the com stalk by the farmers of this State would not 

 undertake to say that more than fifty per cent, of the 

 feeding value of the com stalks in Kentucky is actually 

 saved by the farmers. There is an annual loss, there- 

 fore, of approximately thirty millions of dollars in Ken- 

 tucky through our wasteful methods of handling the 

 com plant after the ear is taken therefrom. Were all 

 of these plants put into silos at the right time, practically- 

 all of this waste would be prevented, since, in filling the 

 silo, the entire com plant is used. Stock, especially 

 cattle and sheep, will eat practically the entire plant in 

 the form of good ensilage. From a saving standpoint 

 alone, therefore, the immense value of the silo to the 

 corn-growing fanner is self-evident, but the value of 

 the silo does not stop here." 



The fact that live stock will go through an entire 

 winter in better shape feeding off of ensilage, encour- 

 ages the live stock owner, and a greater effort is made 

 to produce the' most possible out of the animals kept. 

 The manure is used to build up the land. Clovers do better 

 on lands full of humus, and soon the farmer has learned 

 a great lesson in soil-building. The silo has done much 

 toward turning farmers to constructive farming. Ken- 

 tucky has made great strides along the" lines of pro- 

 gressive agriculture in the last few years, and nothing 

 the department has done has paid better than its work 

 in silo construction. It now owns about fifteen forms, 

 varying from twelve to eighteen feet in diameter. These 

 forms cost from seventy-five to ninety dollars each, with 

 the exception of one fourteen-foot steel form, which cost 

 about $650. Two men have been kept in the field dur- 

 ing the summer months for the last four seasons. The 

 salary of the representative of the department, his trans- 

 portation and incidental expenses are paid by the State. 



