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Source
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Accession No. 1 4- i O |
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NEW HAMPSHIRE
AGRICULTURAL
EXPERIMENT STATION,
BULLETIN No. 1.
ENSILAGE
-A.IPK-XIj, 1888.
ENSILAGE.
The first investigation of ensilage made on the Agricultural
College farm was in 1886. During the past year this work has
been very much increased in amount and scope. Very few, to-
day, doubt the economy of ensilage as food for farm stock, but
there are a variety of opinions concerning the methods of pro-
duction and storing of this valuable food. Many small or me-
dium farmers are rejecting the silo, not for lack of faith in it but
for a supposed lack of means. My object, in this work of in-
vestigation, was not, therefore, especially planned for the wealthy
farmer, with large farm and stock, but rather for that larger
class who till small areas, and whose plans must recognize the
financial factor, the cost of equipment.
A few of the questions asked were :
1st. Are costly silos of masonry necessary?
2d. Can green crops be stored whole?
3d. Is rapid filling necessary ?
4th. Is there any advantage to be gained by selecting the
variety of corn planted ?
1st. Experience demonstrates that a silo of forty to seven-
ty tons capacity can be built in a section of almost any barn at
a cost of one dollar for each ton, or for forty to seventy dollars.
This pays for the lumber, the labor, and all materials used. On
farms where there is an abundance of lumber, and stone for
foundations, the cash outlay for a one hundred ton silo need not
exceed $25.00 for materials, saw bill, etc.,
and 10.00 for labor, supposing the team work done by farm
team,
or $35.00 for a one hundred ton silo. First cost of silo,
then, need not deprive any farmer of the benefits of ensilage.
2d. The experience of the past two years, both on the Col-
lege farm and among others who have tried the system, has
clearly shown that corn may be stored whole in the silo, giving,
in many respects, a better preserved ensilage than when cut into
inch or half inch lengths. My position on this point is precisely
what it was one year ago, namely : To those that have power,
whether horse or steam, and who do not object to having a few
hundred dollars invested in extra machinery, I would say, cut
your ensilage ! it is more convenient to feed, it comes out of the
silo with less labor, the extra cost in storing will be offset by the
convenience in handling, a7id^ in cast of ra?tk grow mg corn, of the
Western or Southern varieties, by decreased waste in feeding ;
to those who have no conveniences for cutting and who are hes-
itating to invest in the needed machinery, I would most emphat-
ically say, build a silo and fill it with whole corn, packing care-
fully, and you will have a first-class article well preserved, and
if the corn is of medium growth little will be wasted in feeding;
no farmer should hesitate, for a moment, if the case has resolved
itself into a question of whole ensilage or no ensilage, in fact, I
feel certain that, in many cases, even when a machine could be
hired to come at the right time and cut the corn, it would prove
unprofitably from the financial point of view alone.
3d. Rapid filling is not only unnecessary but it is objec-
tionable, for two reasons : first, to the average farmer it means
the hiring of considerable outside help, both of men and teams,
and, second, I am satisfied that better ensilage, whether whole
or cut, will result from slow filling than from rapid.
4th. The question as to whether there is an advantage in
selecting seed for ensilage corn is one of great importance and
one that has been too much neglected ; there was a time, not
wholly past either, when bulk and weight ^ox^ the only measures
of value that were supposed to apply to ensilage crops. ToJis
per acres, regardless oi feeding value per ton, were regarded as the
best indication. This is wrong, and to-day the most experienced
users are finding that immature, watery varieties, though stand-
ing higher on the scale of ions per acre are really lower on the
true scale oi feeding value in ihe manger.
The general scope of our work for 1887 was as follows : To
determine the most valuable variety of corn for our climate and
locality ; to compare the cost of production and feeding valiic of
such varieties ; to note the relation of crop composition to de-
gree of maturity ; to compare the relative cost of harvesting corn^
both for cut and whole ensilage, and for the crib and fodder
stack* to determine the relative exhaustion of the soil occasion-
ed by the varieties experimented with.
As the work progressed other lines of inquiry presented
themselves, many of which could not be worked out for lack of
time and means.
Four varieties of corn were selected. One, a white South-
ern, or dent corn, widely sold as an ensilage corn ; another, a
dent variety, sent out two years ago by the Department of Agri-
culture, known as the " Pride of the North," originating in Min-
nesota ; a third, known as the " Sanford " corn ; and the fourth
variety, a common twelve-rowed corn, producing a large growth,
both of fodder and ears. This latter corn is a variety which, in
ordinary corn years, will mature well for husking.
Five acres of land, in one field, were selected for the work.
A part of the land was sod land, broken in the fall, and the re-
mainder had been in winter rye and millet the previous year.
The rows were so arranged as to give each experiment the same
relative proportion of sod and old land. The field was divided
into two parts and duplicate rows were arranged on each half;
also, one half was fall manured and the other half in the spring.
'I'he following statement shows the cost of producing an acre
of ensilage on this field :
]OrAL FOR FIVE ACRES,
Plowing, $6.50
Replowing in spring, 1.50
.00
Drawing and spreading manure (on north
half) thirty-five loads, 7.50
Drawing manure into heap in winter (south
half), $6.50
Moving manure from heap (south half), 2.70
Drawing manure from yard (south half), 6.00
$15.20
Spreading, 1.50
Harrowing, . 6.50
Marking for planting, 1.50
Planting, 2.40
Applying fertilizer, .87
Total cost of labor up to the time seed was
in the ground, $43-47
Harrowing after corn was up (3 times over), $1.65
Cultivating, 6.07
3
Hoeing by hand, 9.74
$17-46
Total labor from plowing to harvesting for 5 acres, $60.93
Total from plowing to harvesting per acre, 12.19
The cost of harvesting varied with the yield per acre and
the method of harvesting, and will, therefore, be given for indi-
vidual acres rather than for the whole five.
One acre planted with the Southern corn, with the ensilage
cut into three-fourths inch lengths, cost as follows :
Cutting and loading, $5-56
Drawing into barn, 4.68
Cutting and packing, 11 -97
Cost of harvesting per acre.
The yield was 20.45 tons, or a cost per ton of
With the Sanford corn the cost was :
Cutting and loading,
Drawing,
Cutting and packing,
Total for harvesting, $15.28
Yield per acre 15.31, or cost per ton for harvesting, 1.00
With the Pride of the North the yield was 12.54 tons, and
the cost of harvesting per ton, $1.24.
The Northern field gave us 16 tons, cost (or harvesting,
$1.00.
The rule for charging the cost of manure is not a definite
one, and varies among various writers. Some charge the whole
cost of manure applied, others one-half or one-third.
In my work 1 have followed a three years rotation and charge
the total value of all manure used equally to the three crops,
thus one-third of the total application standi charged to the en-
silage. The following figures show the value of all manure and
fertilizers used on the five acres :
31.7 cords farm yard manure at $3.00 per cord, $95.10
1,000 lbs. fertilizer, at $1.90 per cwt., 19.00
$22
.21
I
.oS
$3.76
3 15
8.37
Total for five acres, $114.10
Or per acre, 22.82
The interest on land is divided each year, as two crops are
produced. Each is charged one-half interest on value of an acre
4
. of land ; .the cost of seed is charged to each crop.. These fac-
tors coyer the.whole cost of producing ensilage, froni the turn-
ing of the first furrow to the weighting of the silo.
The following recapitulation gives this CQst, botji per acre
; and ton, of product :
Labor, up to harvest time, per acre, $12.17
Labor harvesting, . 22.21
Cost of manure, $22.82, (one-third charged to this crop), 7.61
Total per acre, j/; $4i-99
Yield 20.45 toi'is ; cost'per ton, ^ " $2.05
Add interest and value of seed used, ' - - .- ^^
Gives whole cost per tonj^f Sor.thern corn ensilage •
as put into the. silo, • .. , $2.21
Apply the same summary to the Sanford corn and the cost
complete becomes, $2.48.
With the Pride of the North it is $3.07, and with the North-
ern field corn, $2.40.
The following table will give a comparative statement of
the yield and cost of the four varieties :
Yield iier acre
Cost
in ions.
per ion.
Southern corn.
20.45 .
$2.21
Sanford corn,
15-31
2.48
Northern field corii,
A 16.00 -|,
2.40
Pride of the North, -
12.54
' ' 3-P7
Here we have varieties pf corn producing ensilage in vary-
ing quantieSi per acre and at varying prices, and the problem
which the practical man desires solved is this : Is there any one
variety better than the others? ,
There is but one way to finally settle such a problem, and
th.a.thy/eet/iugthe different kinds and noting the product, whether
beef, milli, or butter. But alongside of this feedmg it is of great
value to know the chemical composition of the crop.
July 26 samples were taken from each variety of corn. Five
average stalks were cut up, their weight, height and degree of
development carefully ascertained and recorded ; foiir stalks of
each of these varieties were Iwng up in a dry attic to air dry, the
other stalk was taken to the laboratory cut up and the per cent
of water determined. The part not used, in this wa,ter determin-
ation was dried and bottled for future analysis. , .„ ^
5
August 5 another set of samples were taken in the same
way, and again, on each of the following dates, namely, August
19 and September 16. This gave samples of each variety at
diflferent dates, enabling a comparison of the varieties at the
same date, and of the changes in development and composition
at given intervals.
The following graphical table shows the height of the corn
in feet at the intervals mentioued, as well as the weight per stalk
in ounces, the whole length of vertical line representing feet on
the scale of i inch equals 4 feet, or % inch equals i foot, while
the character {<%) represents the weight per stalk, in ounces, }i
inch in vertical height equals 4 ounces.
Scale of feet per inch.
Noftfaefii Field Corn.
k A
j\
#
Sanford Corn.
A A
Pride of the North.
A A
Southerti Dent.
(Ensilage com.")
â– 3
<
3
<
'—. <
^ t
«
n
tn
O"
â– 6
*4
0.
u
>>
3
•—1
<
<
V)
This shows that the ensilage corn did not reach its full de-
velopment in height until September 16. The Pride of the
6
North attained its full height August 19, and the Northern Field
and Sanford, Aug. 5,
In general the weight per stalk increased in about the same
ratio as the height until August 19, while after that, and until
September 16, in each variety there was a falling off in weight,
•caused, no doubt, by a loss of water in the stalks.
September 16 the height of the
Southern corn was 12 ft., weight per stalk, 47 ounces,
Pride of the North was 9^^ ft., " " 27.8 "
Sanford was 8 ft., " " 27.6 "
Northern Field was 8 ft., " " 22.4 "
The degree of maturity, as shown by the various external
changes, such as tasseling, throwing out silk, blistering of kernel,
kernel in boiling stage, and maturity of kernel, were all record-
ed, and in the following table are given the date at which these
several stages were reached by each variety :
Kind of Corn.
Southern,
Northern Field,
Sanford,
Pride of the North,
Greatest
Height. Weight
Sept. 16
AuR. 5
Aug. 19
Aug. 19
Aug. 19
Aug. 5
Aug. 19
Aug. 19
Tassel-
ing.
Aug. 19
July 26
Aug. 5
Aug. 5
Date of
c-ii,- I Kernel i Kernel i Kernel
bilking. Blister'g ! full. Matur'd
Aug. 19 Sept. 16 Sept.zs
Aug. 5 Aug. 5 ' Aug. 19 j Sept.i6
Aug. 19 Aug. 19 ] Sept. 16 Sept.to
Aug. s Aug. 5 i Aug. 19 I Sept.2o
It will be observed that in all but the Minnesota corn (Pride
of the North) the time of maximum weight and " silking " were
the same, hence, so far as tons per acre are concerned, the crop
could have been cut at that time to the best advantage. The
period between "silking" and "full" kernel, or when in the
boiling stage, was as follows : Southern corn, thirty-seven days ;
Northern field corn, fourteen days ; Sanford, twenty-eight days ;
Pride of the North, fourteen days.
The Pride of the North is a dent corn, which is but little
behind the flint variety grown in this region, and it matures its
seed very well in favorable seasons, the small yield is against it,
however. The Northern flint lead the varieties in earliness and,
as will be seen by the yield per acre, was not exceeded by any
except the Southern corn?
It appears that while the Sanford was from ten to fourteen
days later than the Northern field, it was well matured by Sep-
tember 15, and produced practically the same weight per acre
at nearly the same cost per ton.
7
The samples taken September i6 were divided into stalk,
ear, husk, and leaves, and weighed, with the results given below :
Ratio of
Ratio of
Variety
Stalk.
Ear
Husk.
i
Leaves.
Total.
leaves to
â– stalk.
ear to to-
tal wei't.
oz.
oz.
' oz.
oz.
. (IZ.
Soirhc-n.
â– sH
bVs
4%
8
34H
I : 1.9
I : 5.2
Nnriliern Field,
9Va.
7%
iK
4/4
22%
J : 2.2
I : 2.q
San or i,
1 1
z'A
2
4/8
19^8
I : 2.7
1:7:8
Pride of the North,
9
7
1 sV*
4M
.23%
I : 2
I : 34
This table is not based upon enough weighings to be taken
as a standard, and is, in a measure, misleading, for example, the
Southern corn appears more leafy than any other variety, but the
thick base of the leaves encasing the stalk are much lonsrer in
this variety, and being very thick bring up the weight of the
leaves. This may be an advantage, or the reverse, according as
this part of the leaf is richer or poorer in nutriment, a question
which! find no information on. Chemical' anailysis would show
this, but this line of inquiry was, from necessity, left for future
investigation.
In the case of the Sanford corn, I am of the opinion that
the proportion between the total weight and the weight of ear is
too small to represent a true average.
In the case of the Northern field and Pride of the North
the ratio of ear to total weight is very nearly correct as was shown
by husking a part of the corn later.
CHEMICAL COMPOSITION OF CROPS.
The samples taken at the date above mentioned were anal-
ysed by Dr. .Burleigh, with the results given below :
Sdinhern.
Northern Field.
Sanford. '
Pride of
North.
Date. ..
Wai^r.
Dry sub-
stance.
8.75
10.82
15.05
24.^0
Water.
â– .â–
8775
86.IO
81.45
72.40
Drv sub-
stance-
12.25
13.90
IS 55
27.60
Water:
Drysiib-
stance.
Water.
9065
87.5''
82.25
7" 45
Di vsnb-
stance.
Julv 2'),
A ic. 5,
Aun. 19,
Sept. i'>.
gi.25
89.18
84.95
754°
90.85
86.79
86.75
77-20
9.15
13.21
i3-'5
22.80
9-35
12.44
â– 7 75
29-55
The increase of dry substance, which is the only part of
value as food, in the ordinary acceptation of ihe word food, is
exhibited in the following tabular form :
Per centage increagt of dry substance in Rrowing corn
From Aug. 19 to Sept. 16.
Va'ietv.
Southern,
Northern field. corn,
Sanford,
Pride of the North,
From July 26 to Sept. 16.
181 per cent.
125 per cent.
149 per cent.
216 per cent.
8
63.4 per cent.
48.8 per cent.
72.0 per cent.
66.4 per cent.
These fi2;ures must be taken in connection with the last ta-
ble, as they show the per centage of increase and not the abso-
lute gain, thus the gain on the Noithern field corn from July 26
to September 6 is 125, but on July 26 the Northern field corn
had 1251^ per cent of dry substance, while the Southern corn had
only 8.75.
Comparing the dry substance in one hundred pounds of
corn at the several dates and we shall find the following: to be
true :
Gain of dry substance from' July 26 to Sfept. 16. ' Aug. ig to Sept. 16.
Southern, ^5-^S 't»s. 9.55 lbs.
Northern field, i5-35 lbs. 9.05 lbs.
Sanford, 13-65 lbs. 9.55 lbs.
Pride of the North, 20.20 lbs. 11.80 lbs.
So that while the per cent, of increase varied widely the act-
ual gain per hundred pounds was nearly identical in three of the
varieties.
The followin ^ table shows the complete analyses of the four
varieties, as sampled September 16:
u
â– A
13
.
t!
Ash contain'd
i
- E
rt
i « ,'
u
75- 1'''
" 1
>% 1
u 1
Q 1
24.60
9
2.^6'
14.S8
U «
1)
0.5S
Oh
â– i
SoiillvTn,
5-95
.0269
.0917
Nnrlli •'•ii FieM,
72.40
2/. 60
2.^S
17.17
I..10
4- 79
1.69
Sanford,
77.20
22. ^'o
2. I I
'3-85
i.oS
4.«.
•93
Pride of tlv North,
70. ,5
2).5V
325
i6»gi
1-55
6.04 1
-..77
.088S
."342
From these figures we mriy compute the total amount
of each constituent produced per acre, obtaining the follow-
in:
Soulh.;rM,
N(irih?rn Fie'd,
Sanford,
Pride .if ihe North,
Dry
A bumen-
Nitrogen
Ether
Fibre.
snl)stance.
iiid.s.
free exi'ci.
e»iract.
lb~.
lbs.
-U.S.
lbs.
lbs.
loo'o
9^5
5*61
2,6
2435
8S^2
84S
5+97
4>S
15U
6. So
646
4247
330
1470
7411
8.5
42 ?9
397
1516
Ash.
Ins.
4''"'3
5P
2S6
444
, If we accept the chemical composition as a true basis of
value the twelve and one half tons of Pride of the North would
be more valuable than the fifteen and one-third tons of Sanford,
and nearly as valuable as the sixteen tons of Northern field corn,
but no test that stops short of the feeding barn can be decisive,
and we will, therefore, defer all discussion of this point until a
subsequent " Bulletin on Feeding,"
It is to be noted that the Southern corn did produce more
dry substance per acre than any other variety; it should be re-
membered, however, that while the Southern corn produced
twenty-seven per cent, more gross weight as harvested it pro-
duced but fourteen per cent, more dry substance than the North-
ern field corn, and reducing the cost per hundred pounds of dry
substance into a comparable form we find it to be $0,448 for the
Southern, and $0,434 for the Northern.
Ensilage shrinks in the silo, so that the number of tons avail-
able for feeding is less than the total amount harvested.
Last year the shrinkage for whole corn ensilage was twenty
per cent for Southern corn.
This year the Southern corn cut, not whole, shrunk 16.5
per cent., the Sanford cut 5.5 per cent, and the Northern, put
in whole, 23 per cent.
COST OF FILLING, WHOLE OR CUT.
Our ensilage corn in 1886 was an average distance of forty
rods from the silo, and in 1887 it was fifty rods away, so that the
cost of filling is comparable. In 1886 the Southern corn was put
in whole, the yield was twenty-two tons per acre, and the cost of
harvesting was fifty-five cents per ton. In 1887 the cost was
$1 08, the yield per acre being twenty and one-half tons. This
extra fifty-three cents represents the additional cost for cutting,
In 1886 the cost per ton of harvesting the field corn ensil-
age was sixty-one cents when put in whole, while in 1887 the
cost, when run through the ensilage cutter, was one dollar.
Or if we confine the comparison to the past year's work we
have the cost of harvesting a field of ensilage not included in
the experiments upon which this Bulletin is based. This field
is two hundred rods from the barn and would, therefore, be at a
disadvantage as compared with the field averaging but fifty rods
distant.
The cost of harvesting the whole ensilage on the field two
hundred rods from silo was 60.7 cents per ton. The cost of hair
vesting the cut ensilage on field fifty rods distant was $1.00 per
ton.
The yield in each case being practically alike, had the for-
mer field been but fifty rods away I believe the cost could have
been reduced from 60.7 cents as low as 50 or 55 cents. In gen-
eral we may say that, so far as our experience gees, it will cost
10
from forty to fifty cents extra per ton to run it through the cut-
ter, and a part of this comes from the fact that more teams and
men are needed, and the wasted time becomes considerably
greater, even with the most careful planning.
THICK OR THIN PLANTING.
A part of our plan covered the point of seeding, and while
the results obtained are not in accord with the views of many
careful and intelligent ensilage users they are, nevertheless, the
results that the scales gave and, while not conclusive, are cer-
tainly better than an unsupported opinion.
One question intimately connected with this cannot be dis-
cussed in this Bulletin for lack of date. I fefer to the effect of
thick planting upon quality of product.
The Sanford corn was planted as follows : Four rows on
south half of field, seeded thin (sixteen quarts per acre). Du-
plicate rows were planted on the north half of field, but two of
these were seeded thin, (sixteen quarts), and the other two thick,
{thirty-two quarts per acre).
The yield, computed per acre, was as follows :
South half of field, thin seeding, 13.44 tons.
North half of field, thin seeding, 15.72 tons.
North half of field, thick seeding, 18.67 tons.
The Pride of the North was also planted in two ways, the
•north half seeded at the rate of sixteen quarts per acre, and the
south half thirty-two quarts per acre. The yield was, for the
thin planting, 11.52 tons, and for the thick planting, 13.51
tons.
The conclusion, so far as any can be drawn from this state-
ment, must be that thick seeding will give greater yields per
acre than thin, but further investigation may show that the qual-
ity i.s inferior.
The silo is one of the few additions to our agriculture that
is applicable to men of limited means, and is, at the same time,
within their reach.
Agricultural machinery, or thoroughbred stock, though great-
ly needed by all, are often beyond the means of the farmer till-
ing small areas, the expense being out of proportion to the in-
come. But a silo is just as available and just as valuable to the
farmer keeping five head of cattle as it is to the possessor of a
hundred, hence, the importance of thoroughly establishing a ra-
il
tlonal and economical system of producing and storing this kind
of food.
The following directions for establishing the system upon-
either small or large farms may aid those wish to commence the
present year. The capacity of the silo must first be determined,
and this is dependent upon the number of cattle to be fed. For
our climate we must count upon barn feeding for two hundred
days, and at fifty pounds of ensilage per day we shall need five
tons per animal ; this amount will be sufficient for a full sized
cow or ox. Young cattle need less, but with the shrinkage and
waste five tons is a sufficiently close estimate. For twenty cat-
tle, therefore, one hundred tons are needed. Having decided
on the amount needed, the question arises, how great a space is
needed to hold this amount. No definite answer can be siven
to this, as the space required per ton varies with the size of silo
and the depth. Fifty cubic feet will contain rather more than a
ton in siloes of seventy to one hundred tons capacity, so that our
silo to hold one hundred tons might be 15x15 feet and thirty feet
high, the extra space being necessary, as it is impossible to fill
a silo so as to have it more than three-fourths full when settled.
A better shape for a one hundred ton silo would be 20x20 feet
and sixteen feet high ; the dimension for a fifty ton silo might