162 ILLINOIS STATE DAIRYMEN'S ASSOCIATION 



the results obtained in the three other trials indicate that 

 silage made from snapped ear corn is a satisfactory and 

 economical feed. It was concluded after the four tests that 

 the ensiling of snapped ears is one of the best methods of 

 storing soft corn. The grain is no better preserved than in 

 normal silage, but more of it can be stored. When the 

 snapped ears alone are ensiled, from two to three times 

 more grain can be stored in the same space than could be 

 stored if normal silage were made. 



Extra Grain Feed May Be Needed. 



One of the main points that should be kept in mind in 

 the feeding of silage made from snapped ears is that the 

 green husks and silks, which are roughage, make up about 

 one-fourth of the weight of the snapped ear and that a big 

 percentage of its remaining weight is water. For this rea- 

 son, it may be hard for cattle to eat enough of the silage 

 alone to get the proper amount of dry matter for the most 

 rapid and economical gains. When this is the case, it may 

 pay to supplement the silage with some other grain. Oats 

 may be used for this purpose when shelled corn is not avail- 

 able. This plan works out nicely, for a typical soft-corn 

 year usually is a good oats year. Such is the case this 

 season. 



In order to increase the consumption of dry matter 

 when soft corn is being fed, some feeders recommend fre- 

 quent feeding. This may pay where the cost of the extra 

 labor used does not run too high. 



This problem of getting live stock to consume enough 

 dry matter for the most rapid and economical gains can be 

 partially solved by the way in which ,the soft corn is stored. 

 In the case of ear corn, for instance, well-ventilated cribs 

 and cribs with special drying equipment aid in drying out 

 the corn, thus increasing the percentage of dry matter con- 

 sumed when the grain is fed. 



Corn that is to be used in finishing off hogs and cattle 

 during the latter stages of the fattening period had best be 

 stored in cribs and dried out instead of being ensiled. It 

 should be remembered, however, that the problem of pre- 



