FESILAGE.

Ashburton Guardian, Volume VII, Issue 2268, 31 October 1889, Page 2

FESILAGE.

Though it is only a few years ago that tbe method of preserving green food for oattle by means of silos came into notice, it is rapidly assuming great importance m the eyes of farmers, not' only m England bat m other countries also, and seems destined to come into very extensive use. In Victoria recently there has been an agricultural conference for the purpose of discussing the merits of the new process, particularly m relation to dairying, the outcome of which was to demonstrate its great value, indeed (says a contemporary) " every farmer who has tried it seems to be oonvinced that its introduction will mark a new era m the history of dairy farming m Australia, What w ; /J n irrigation and ensilage they w^ have little difficulty m provid : ; ng succulent, nutritious, and mil^.p ro duoing food for their oattle all *Jne year round." Of the rapidity lth wnioh the use of the Bilo haß come into favor m the Old Country we read that " m 1882 m Great Britain there were six silos m existence ; bat last year the number had risen to 2667, and it was calculated that nearly 1300 farmers had made ensilage m stack." The journal from which we gather these facts (the " Dunedin Evening Star") gives a quantity of interesting information with respect to the mode of preparation and to the merits of ensilage as fodder. It says : — " Ensilage is good for all kinds of stock, and even poultry. It is of two kinds, sweet and eour— the former is said to be better for fattening, bat the sour is preferred for miloh cows — and it is made, as we have already said, m two different ways— either m the silo (which is simply a pit dug m the ground, and lined with wood) or m stack. The latter mode' is the cheaper, and it is better than the other for making sweet ensilage ; though there is, on the other hand, a certain amount of logs from exposure to the weather." It appears that heavy pressure when silos are used is not essential, as according to Professor Brown "littlo if, any weight is needed except for stacks j .", the cost of preparation being variously stated at the Victorian Conference 1 above referred to as ranging from less than 2a up to 8s per ton. Thus we read that— " One .of the farmers at the Melbourne Conference said that his cost him 8s per ton, exclusive of the cost of the pit ; but aMrJ. L. Thompson gave the following estimate for making fifty tons m stack :— " A three-horse team with reaper and binder and man, 80s ; three drays with men, 80s ; one man pitching, 5s ; three men stacking, 15s ; total £4, or about 1b 7d per ton.' This is probably too low an estimate ; but Professor Brown (of the Longerenong Experimental Farm) stated that they had made a twenty ton stack of »ye enei}age at the Experimental Farm that cost, everything inducted, 4s 6d per ton," As to the advantages of ensilage, as compared with turning the green crop into hay, the "Star" saya ;— ." A crop that would make one and * half ton of hay to the aore produces 5 or Q tons of. ensilage. It is Baid, moreover^ that ensilage koepß all kinds of stock m better health than h^y, and certainly cows fed on it give >more milk. It thus not only secures the farmer against loss through bad weather- — so far, that is, as his b,ay crop iB concerned — but it adds greatly to. $h© value of the crop. Engage, besides, can be made of gny, gqeen stuff that is not aorid. ox unwholesome. A farmer m Yiotona made a stack of Scotch thistles* which his cattle ate with avidity." 1 In the colony namod, indeed throughout the farming districts of Australia, the use of the silo is, it is stated, likely to be generally adopted, to the great advantage of the dairying industry especially, and this being the case it may well be asked whether it would not be worth . while for our New Zealand farmers to [ tako a loaf out of their neighbors' book, {

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