Tbe farmer Ensilage. PART I.

Waikato Times, Volume XXIII, Issue 1914, 11 October 1884, Page 2 (Supplement)

Tbe farmer Ensilage. PART I.

PAPER BY MR. 11. M. JENKINS, SECRETARY 0*" THE KOYAL AGRICULTURAL SOCIETY OF ENGLAND. Silos for the preservation of green food were originally mere pits or " graves," similar to those which are commonly seen on many English farm", and in which potatops, maugoldE, and even turnips are stored. But howver well these rudimentary stfo&may autwer n dry climates, they scein lo me altogether too risky to bo recommended for adoption in our pluvial islands. Tlv same may be said of silos built with the greatest skill and the best materials if they aro not covered with a roof practically impermeable to rain. Wo need, therefore, only consider the relative advantages of those silos that are impervious to water and air at tho bottiom and sides, and that have a roof over them Lo protect iho contents from the influx of rain water. I have compared such a silo to an agricultmal jam-pot, because our dome-tie jam-pot? are siniilaily impermeable fit tho bottom and sides, and while rcistinq moisture fit the top would, if nncesstny, enable the escape oi~ gases through or wound the my.itciious and saturated coveiing, to the °paco between the said covering and the skin ioof. A moo accurate comparison, however, is one that would not be eapilj understood by iho majority of English iiumets— -mmely, a Orerman sauo Kraut jar ; becaus3 vhile tho jempot conditions are tLo some, the cibbpge which is transformed into iauahnit L not cooked bofore being put into the jar. Also, as will be psen in the sequel, the np n ,"s-sity of complete consolidation ol the contents of the jar, so thoroughly a;pj eclated by the bauerLraut maker, snould aNo h<> paid gicat attention to by those vno wish fL.eees>3ful!y to preserve fodder in silos. COXSTKUCITOX OV fcILOS. Exporiuientera in ensilage have gcnei'dly constructed their 3ilos of brick", concrete, or stone — either entirely afrcs'i, or bj adapting an old building, or a part oi one. In eoine cases the silos ere above ground. in others below ground, and in others again partly above and partly below, whether on level land or on a slope. Tho geneial result of my information as to the cost of constxueting si'os as new buildings, including a permanent roof, supposing that the most had bean made of local circumstances and conditions, is that Cl per ton of silage capacity may be taken ad a fair average. Where old barns can be used wholly or m part, the coit of construction is almost nothing in the foimer case, because thcie is nothing to constiuct, and pioportiunafely reduced in the latter, bccnuse then only one o v two walls and no pioof requiie to be rnrd?. Silos above ground ha\o i« great advantage in no;; being liable to tho pcs eolation of drainage-water, or to innuiatioi'S fiom streams, both of which have proved \ery troublebomc, and, jndebd, desh active in borae cases. It is hue that they nrcepsiVuc the employment of means of elevating the materials to be put in the silofa ; but, on the other hand, they render tho pinptying proces j much more easy pnd economical. One advantage of the underground silo is tbtu it-, xoof may be placed at such a height abo\e its upper margin thai the inteimediate rpaco may be used as a kind of Dutch or Cheshire barn for the temporary ttoiage of hay, straw, etc., until the time arnveb wher> it become" necessary to use the silage. But owing to this limitation of its usefulness it sce:ns lh.\i only in certain localities and on special farina could the roof be; used in pr icticc aa a hayshec. CROPS I'OR ENhILU.L. I come now to the contint, of Iho silo, and the best lnennd o f p. epuirg them for the process of ensilage. Of English fodder crops theie can be no doubt that oidmniy meadow grass i c< . the most nmveisal and the easici prfcsencd, but closer and artificial parses pie^ent no diliiculty. Wa2n green xye or oats (I iirn afraid to siy greeu corn, as it may produce another Ameiic-n misconception) <ue intended for tho nlo, care should be taken to cut tliem while ofcill &nilieiently succulent in the stem, o-nd while trie giain i* quite milky. This caution is even moie necep-jaiy in the case of ttaes. -which seem gencrrlt} to have been allowed to get too ripe befme using put into the silo. Of tbe ci ops which have been experimented with, 10 fai as I have anypeisonnl Lnowledge 01 the facts, jjiicLly comfiey uppearj to be the only ghc iound absolutely unsuitable for ensilage ; the piPfceivation of cpbbage in pilos sterns to me a waste of foice in cur climate, except under very peeuhyr clvoumsisuces; and green maize, although it makes ptob^bly some of tne be=' u and most nutritious sik'ge, and elmoji the worst foddei when pieaeived dry, has but a limited interest foi the JDntifch t u-nier. The practice of ensilage may, in my i'u<!gment, have tnis gieat fact put to it 3 credic — that it enables us to preM -vc ia a slate fit lor sale that almost intracrpbJo product oi 1 the land which id termed seviv.ge-gia'- 1 : and it also enables one to tu-n to piofitable ase coarse arid wiry grafes gi owing under treed, and in odd nooks and corners, the hay from which would be scarcely worth the cosL of making. CHOPPING AND SVLTIVO. Two other re&uHs of my investigations, being inferences fioui tho evidence I have collected, are, that materials to be preserved in silos should be chopped, and that they should not be mixed with salt. Ido not say that chopping h absolutely necessary, or that salting is essentially p:inicious ; but J believe that much better silage is obtained with chopping and without salting than otherwise. A SPECIE AM *XT\GL. One special advantage expected fiom ensilage is that it will enable crops to be cut and pitted in wet weather when haymaking is impossible. No doubt this would be its greatest recommendation to the consideration of the Biitish farmer ; but I may be allowed to caution all those whom it may concern that crops cut in that state require careful treatment af lei wards, otherwise a strongsmelling mass of pickles will be obtained, which cattle will otten eat readily enough, but which will require a considerable addition in their food of the stuff that makes the beef. In other words, the procesa of fermention will proceed so rapidly under such circumstances that there will be a maximum loss of nutritive matter. TREADING. In the process of filling the silo it should be deemed of cardinal impoitance to tread tho material thoroughly as it is put in, and not only to tiead by men and women, but also by horses — on the continent they use bullocks — and, in addition, to ram like a pavior, whether with or without his concomitant grunt. Perfect consolidation in this stage is much more effective than any amount of weighing afterwards, besides diminishing the expense of the latter proceeding. A\ EIGIITING. The pressure required I have found to vary with the nature of the crop, its comparative ripeness and dryness, whether it has been chopped or unchopped, and so forth. The heavy weights — from 1} cwt&. to 2 cwts. per superficial foot — which are now employed in the North of England, seem lo be in excess of what is necessary or desirable ; while the light weighting, or 40 lbs. or 50 lba. to the square foot, which is met with in the South of England, seems to err equally on the other side. My impression is that with good treading and ramming, and chopped material, a weighting of one cwt. to the square foot Bhould rarely be excelled. I can understand cases in which even that weight -would be excessive, such, for instance, as succulent grass chopped into short lengths; and I can imagine others, such as almost lipe tares, or oats, or rye, when no amount ef pressure would be too great. But neither of these would be cases oi practical or scientific ensilage. One of the greatest difficulties in connection with ensilage at present is the expense of

weighting. Concrete blooks, bricks, steel ingots, and iron weights are all more or less costly, so also are the mechanical moans of pressuiG that I have seen at work. The only economical method that I know of is the use of whn.t may be collectively termed " local materials." I believe that a layev of earth one foot thick over a covering of boards is almost better than anything elae, because the pressure is uniform and the material is prnctlcally costless. If, however, such materials as stones, gravel, slag, &c, are used, they should be put in some kind of package, such as old guano ba^s, old Hour or oyster barrels, Ac, othonviae the weight is likely to be iiregiilarly distributed.