Show SILOS by E 3 MAYNARD U SA A C trench silos tor for the ngot lof corn or other forage crops have very general satisfaction throughout the intermountain area in recent years there la Is little question regarding the supremacy of silage over dra dry fodder as a livestock feed the matter of production cost being perhaps the most important stumbling blob to a widespread use of silage tor for livestock fattening purposes with the development in use of the trench silo many stockmen have been en abbed to cut their silage costs ma serially teri ally trench silos varying from 10 to 40 feet in width from 8 td to I 1 10 0 feet deep and of varying length have been constructed by the a simple mple pro cess of a few day s labor with a plow fresno and scraper and have scored 60 to tons of silage in a very satisfactory manner with practical ly no waste in selecting a site for the silo a fairly well drained spot will give the best results dirt from the trench Is usually piled along its sides to in cr crease e ease depth plastering the sides with cement may eliminate caving and capillary action of the dry soil but Is not necessary width and depth of the silo should be govern ed by the size of herd to be fed and the length by the size of the crop with a prospective shortage of wa ter during the coming summer a plan to ensile corn or some other forage crop for winter feeding Is a wise thing to do afflick bastian 0 of salina writes that he Is very much pleased with the results of his first experience with a trench silo last winter and with the corn silage he secured he ile states that he is growing twice the amount ot of corn thia this year and en barging his silo accordingly he ile fed the silage to fattening heifers corn may be cut with an ensilage cutter into the trench silo or may be ensiled in bundles from the corn binder corn silage is usually considered to be worth about one halt the price ot of alfalfa hay per ton as a fattening teed feed tor for livestock while a slightly higher value Is claimed when it Is fed to dairy cattle when used for fattening purposes the corn should be well dented and the plant fairly well matur matured e d with lower leaves and husks dried out before cutting into the silo little water Is needed on the silage provided the crop has not become too dry to pack readily in trench silos with ordinary dirt walls however the silage adjacent to the walls should usually be wet down thou otherwise ac tion may take the moisture from the corn bordering on the sides and may cause some spoilage the silage should be well packed with horses or tractor and may be covered with a layer ot of straw or of dirt S L tribune 31 1931 |