Wastage in Silage MAY BE DUE TO FAULTY SEALING

New Zealand Journal of Agriculture, Volume 73, Issue 6, 16 December 1946, Page 566

Wastage in Silage MAY BE DUE TO FAULTY SEALING

■ pARMERS with experience A in silage ■ making have often been puzzled to account for the variable amount of wastage on the top surface, and many have attributed excessive * wastage to faulty . sealing due to an insufficient covering, of earth, or to the failure. of the earth to bind together. into a homogeneous air-proof layer. While . no doubt .the amount of wastage is also influenced by the class of the grass material used in topping off, the experience of Messrs.' H. S. Langridge & Sons, Warkworth, ,indicates that imperfect sealing may be the main cause of this trouble. ■ Messrs. Langridge & Sons use a concrete silo sunk about 10ft. below ground level and projecting about 10ft. ' above the ground. The soil excavated in making, the pit was used to form' a ramp so that the silo can be conveniently .filled from a truck.

Despite the care taken to heap on plenty of earth, when the silo was opened each season Messrs. Langridge were disappointed with the excessive quantity of surface wastage, as they are careful farmers who abhor any waste of valuable fodder. They decided that the wastage might be due to the failure -of the dry earth to set and form an air-tight covering, and two years ago they tried out a new and unorthodox method of sealing. Instead of using earth, they used cow manure from the cowshed.

The cow manure used was about 3 weeks to a month old and just/sufficiently moist to run together and form a homogeneous mass which would pro-

- vide good air-tight seal. This manure ) was spread over the surface to a unit form depth of 6 to 9in.,. being held in position by the concrete rim of the > silo.

When, opened up, the silage beneath was found to-be in beautiful condition, with > only about 2in. of waste. as compared with up to Ift. of waste in previous years. Using the method again last season, Messrs. Langridge again' found a minimum of waste on the top surface and are now more than ever confirmed in their belief that the previous excessive wastage was due to imperfect sealing;

Messrs. Langridges’ silo has a good water-tight roof, and the method adopted probably could not be applied to ordinary pit., or stack silage.. They are emphatic that the use of cow manure in the right condition' involves less work than is required when using earth in the ordinary way. The covering of manure is easily removed when opening the. silage and is in perfect condition for. garden use. Although the method described may have only a limited application, the experience quoted suggests that the excessive top-wastage often found when opening out silage, may be due to a defective seal. Messrs. Langridge & Sons are very capable and experienced farmers, and their unconventional system, of sealing at least provides a possible explanation to the many farmers who are.. at times puzzled to explain this very common

form of silage wastage'. It is evident that the crowning of the silo is of real importance in silage making.

P. S. SYME,

Instructor in Agriculture, Warkworth.