FARMING NOTES

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 1, Issue 96, 4 December 1939, Page 2

FARMING NOTES

THE MAKING OF SILAGE IMPORTANCE OF USING YOUNG LEAFY MATERIAL J. ru. Smith., Fields Superintendent. Hamilton. Tiie call for increased production to meet the war-time demam's has made it imperative thai the su-pl'is pasture of the growing season should be conserved foi those periods when grass alone will not adequately sustain the stock. The makin-g of silage is an important method of pasture cultivation, and in this article the basic principles in the making of silage are outlined.

Great progress has been made in recent years with pasture farming, and with the advent of top-dressing, the use of better pasture strains and species, and the general betterment

of pasture management, many farmers now find themselves in a position to maintain —and, in some cases, to improve—the economic production on their farms on grassland alone without having recourse to supplementary fodder cropping. This has been made possible by the saving of the surplus growth from the pastures in the form of hay and silage during that period of peak pasture growth.

In the early days of dairying and sheep farming, extensive areas of supplementary fodder crops were grown and it was then necessary r.o have a considerable quantity of hay to balance up the watery nature of these fodder crops. To-day, however, with the area in fodder crops eliminated or reduced to a minimum in certain areas, this necessity does not exist, but there does arise a necessity to supply a succulent fodder to take the place of those crops. For this purpose there is no better material than well-made silage. Thus, on those farms where the pastures provide all, or practically all, of the annual fodder for stock, the making of silage becomes a very sound phase of farming, in that ii enables a farmer to control his pas-

ture growth,, a very necessary factor in efficient grassland management, and it provides a succulent highclass fodder for periods of pasture shortage. Hay Also Needed. Silage should not be made to the total exclusion of hay, for there is a place for both on an efficientlymanaged grassland farm in New Zealand to-day, but the saving of surplus growth as silage has certain advantages over the conserving of it as hay. Firstly, silage can be saved in prac ticallv all weather that a farmer is prepared to work in. This means that there need be no vexatious delays on account of showery or broken Aveather, and consecruently it enables farmers to cut their surplus growth at the time when it is at its highest feed value.

Where a farmer is making hay it is frequently necessary, because of weather conditions,, to postpone cutting from day to day, with the result that the material becomes very fibrous and low in feed value, while, in addition, such delay seriously interferes with the subsequent aftermath growth of the pasture. In districts of high rainfall this is an extremely important point. Even in districts of comparatively low rainfall, however, it is a moot point, for frequently the peak of pasture production occurs early in the season, when the weather ir; 100 unsettled for the making of first-class hay. No Risk of Fire. Secondly, there is no risk of fire when silage is being made, whereas, unfortunately, many a haystack has been either totally destroyed by fire or heated to an extent that makes the material almost useless as a stock food. Thirdly, well-made ensilage can be held over from season to season with little deterioration taking place. This is a very important factor, especially in districts where two or three bountiful seasons are succeeded by a series of seasons ol' feed shortage. With a good standby supply of succuleiit silage a farmer can laugh in the face of adverse seasons.

With silage, the milk lield of wet stocks can be fairly well maintained through periods of drought con-

ilitions, whereas the feeding of hay ilone at sue!; timns would result in a falling away in the milk yiebi;. One of the greatest alleged dr:*w•;acks to the conservation of fodder >s silage is tlie heavy nature of the ■.vork said to be entailed. ; n ha ; -vestTig'the green materia' rVith pre-sent-day machinery, the cost of which is within the reach of th;average efficient farmer, the making ;>f si ! age entails no heavier manual labour than does tlie making of hay. Ksji.eeiallv is this true of the farm where mechanisation has been kept in line with modern methods. Qualify of Material, Silage can be made from all tj-pes of green crops, but in this county it lias been found that the growing of special crops of oats, etc.. for silage is hardly warranted, and that in the main it is the surplus pasture growth that is so conserved. A point worth remembering is that the quality of any silage will depend upon the quality of the green material, and that if silage is made from inferior material, such as roughageweeds, etc., the resultant fodder will be inferior in feed value. The old saying that "you cannot make a silk

purse out of a sow's ear" rings true in this respect. At the same time it is well to remember that roughage, etc., should be removed, and that it can be made into a silage which, though low in feed value, is edible.

The quality of silage depends not only upon the species of grasses and clovers from which it is made, also upon the stage at which such: species are cut. It is an accepted fact in farming to-day that young growing grass has a much greater feed value than grass which has become mature, so that it is an advantage to cue the crop on the young, rather than on the old side. Naturally, a certain amount of growth must be allowed before cutting can begin, otherwise the bulk will be so small that the feed units obtained will be costly and uneconomic. As a general rule, cutting should begin just before the seed stalks appear. and at this stage the crop will be at its maximum point of leaf growth. Another advantage ling young leafy material is that such material gives a wide range under which first-class silage can be made, and there is little risk of j failure or partial failure.