80 ILLINOIS STATE DAIRYMEN'S ASSOCIATION 



THURSDAY, JANUARY 13th 



THE ECONOMICAL VALUE OF THE SILO 



By Chas. Foss, Freepart, 111, 



Silage furnishes succulent feed for any season of the 

 year at low expense. For winter feeding silage is far 

 cheaper than roots and is as efficient a feed, except possibly, 

 in the case of animals being fitted for the show ring or Milch 

 cows on forced test. Even in the case of Milch Cows on 

 Official Test, roots should be used as a supplement to silage 

 rather than a substitute. 



The natural and best adapted food for the dairy cow 

 is pasture. In the first place it is a balanced ration and in 

 the second place it is succulent in its nature without which 

 a cow will soon be out of condition and can not produce 

 profitabily. However there are only a few months in the 

 year in which we have pasture in abundance. Not only 

 does the silo furnish succulent feed during the time of the 

 year that we have no pasture but it furnishes it anytime of 

 the year that we need it. Milk cannot be economically pro- 

 duced on dry feed and with the silo it is possible to have a 

 succulent feed the year round, so that milk can be pro- 

 duced the year round at a profit instead of only a few 

 months in the year. 



More than one third of the total food materials of the 

 corn plant is in the stalks and leaves. When the crop is 

 left in the field more than one half of the food value in the 

 fodder is lost, and when it is cut and shocked and left in the 

 field to cure often as much as one half of the food value in 

 the fodder is lost. In careful tests made by the Colorado 

 Experiment Station it was found that when corn is cured in 

 large shocks as much as 31 per cent of the food value was 



