ILLINOIS STATE DAIRYMEN'S ASSOCIATION. 



o 



7 



Every effort was made to surround both silage and the shock corn 

 lots with conditions equally favorable for securing the best results from 

 each feed. 



RATIONS FED 



The amount of corn put into the silo represented an area of 5.33 acres. 

 An equal acreage of corn was also cut and shocked in the field where it 

 remains until needed for feeding tc the calves during the winter and spring 

 months. All of the corn was cut with a corn binder. 



There was a total of 101,200 pounds or 50.60 tons of corn put into the 

 silo. As taken out there were 8617S. 81 pounds, or 43.09 tons. There was, 

 therfore, a total loss of 7.51 ton?, or 14.88 per cent, in the siloing of 5.33 

 acres of corn. Of this loss two tons were taken from the top of the silo 

 in a condition unfit for use. This would leave 5.51 tons, or 10.88 per cem. 

 as shrinkage in gross weight. This is not an unusually high percentage. 

 When it is rememDered that a total of only 50.60 tons of corn were put into 

 the silo from 5.33 acres it will be seen that the yield of silage per acre was 

 about ten tons or below what an average crop should be for Illinois. It 

 is well known that there was a sh oil corn crop last season. Add to this the 

 fact that in this case the corn was of a small early maturing variety and 

 it is easy to account for the low torn age secured. This shortage in yield 

 per acre was not as apparent in the case of the silage as with the shock 

 corn. Had the plot which was fed as shock corn been husked and the 

 stover field cured there would have been a yield of only thirty-two bush- 

 els of shelled corn to the acre, while the yield of cured stover per acre 

 would have been 1.68 tons. Of the jield of shock corn 38.4 per cent 

 was ear corn (70 pounds to the bushel) and 61.6 per cent, was stover. It 

 will be seen that the proportion cl corn to stover in this instance was al- 

 together too small and the total yield of corn and stover much below a 

 normal crop. The stover usually i (-presents from 50 to 55 per cent, or 

 the total tonnage of the corn crop, the average generallyy being some- 

 thing above 50 per cent. 





