ENSILAGE EXPERIMENTS IN DUNEDIN.

Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume 6, Issue 1719, 25 June 1884, Page 2

ENSILAGE EXPERIMENTS IN DUNEDIN.

The desirability of preservfng green fqdcjqr for the ■ purpose qf fattening stock durkg tlje \yintep months is evident. It is only, however of recent yearsthat a cheap process, like a good many more-inventions of the present duy, had its prigiij'in thebrain of some ingenious Atlierioaii,. 'The process Is a very simple',pne,fv ■ft-'consists of enclosing a quantity of green bay or porn in a hermetically sealed barrel or box, or evenina pit dug in the ground. On the pit-being opened after a few weeks the hay is found to be quite fresh, and, oxceptingialittle,;change in color, no material difference is noticeable while it has' lost note of'its substance. • Cattle are said to .be of green food thus preserved,.and ! devour it greedily. Tho process is one that has attracted a good deal of attention both in America and in the Home Country, arid is at the present time' adopted by. many leading agriculturists. What has : probably been the first experiment of the kind in New Zealand was made by Mr Oaimsjoftliatcity, Mr Cairns had'a quantity or green' oaten cut'into dliaffandthen placed' 1 in barrels. Thege were left without, being disturbod for a period of ten weeks, and last Satur-, day they were opened- . A numbpr pj gentlemen interested in such matters; wepe present' to witness the result •of tjje experiment, . If w»S . generally/ pronounced,: |o ;be ;pf a; satisfactory nfttureV A littlei inoulcl jjad ■ gfttjjere'pround the upper edges 'of the cask?, but there was not niore, than a couple of pounds' weight of the silo not fit for use; ; . The.fattening qualities:of the article might have been BOinewhat improved hat},»t little salt 1 been.-sprinkled :ijmpngst,tbe;.i^ up; otherwise the'result of the ejjpenv ment was all that '.could be desired,aha/,' liqw"'that ;its 'successhas ; : been;' .demonstrated Jiii ..New ".Zealand, we, may expect' to hear of silo being used iiia practical way by our agriculturists (