THE SILO. 11 



mon rule with many farmers is to stack when juice can not be twisted 

 out of a wisp of hay taken from the middle of the cock. 



As stated, the common practice in this region is to let hay remain 

 in the field for about a week; in fact, a very large majority of farm- 

 ers think good hay can be made in no other way under the climatic 

 conditions west of the Cascade Mountains. There are some success- 

 ful men, however, who put up hay by what has been termed the 

 " rapid process." With good haying weather the method is about as 

 follows : The grass is cut in the afternoon. Being unwilted, the first 

 night's dew does not injure it. If the crop is heavy the tedder is 

 started the next morning as soon as the dew has dried off, and the 

 hay is gone over as many times as possible during the day. Just 

 before evening it is raked and cocked.* The hay then stands in the 

 field for two nights and a day and until the dew is off the second day. 

 The cocks are then scattered and aired, especially the bottom portions 

 of them, and the hay is hauled to the mow during the day. It thus 

 requires three days from cutting to hauling. The hay is scattered 

 evenly in the mow so that it may all settle alike and exclude as much 

 air as possible, and is salted at the rate of 10 pounds per ton. At 

 night the barn is tightly closed to keep out damp air. 



HAY CAPS. 



When the price of hay is high, it is quite probable that hay caps 

 can be used profitably in making hay west of the Cascade Mountains. 

 The use of caps would prevent the outside of the cocks from becom- 

 ing too dry, and would thus add to the total weight of cured hay. 

 The quality of the hay would be greatly improved, for it would be 

 practically uniform throughout. The use of caps would also greatly 

 increase the certainty of saving the crop. A farmer in Georgia has 

 used hay caps for ten years. He thinks they materially increase both 

 the quality and the quantity of his hay. Unfortunately there are at 

 present no hay caps on the market. However, they may be made of 

 light canvas or any strong cotton cloth in sizes to suit. Caps 4J to 

 5 feet square, with pegs or weights attached to hold them in place 

 when in use, ought to give satisfactory service. A coat of oil should 

 be applied to one side of the cloth. The caps should always be dried 

 after being used, for they will mold if piled up wet. 



THE SILO. 



That the silo should have a very general use in western Oregon 

 and western Washington, not only for the preservation of corn but 

 for many other crops as well, ought to be apparent from an under- 

 standing of the climatic conditions of the region. As previously 

 stated, most of the hay crops are ready to cut during the month of 



94 



