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Comments by: James I. Sprague, Pictures by Bob Strong World's Largest Silo? Bob Strong recently observed a huge silo being constructed at Hartley Feeders at Hartley, Texas. This large capacity silo was constructed by the Max Jantz Excavating Incorporated,. a feedyard construction company, from Montezuma Kansas. The features of this silo are not only the size of the structure but the location of the structure near their new feedmill to facilitate the loading of the corn silage into the complete feedlot rations. Why Silage and High Moisture Grain in Feedlot Rations? Although silage is not essential in feedlot ration, many feedlots use silage and high moisture grain for several reasons. For example, alfalfa hay has become very expensive, and corn silage spiked with natural protein may compete in the least cost rations. Alfalfa hay often is variable in quality particularly after a wet harvest year, while corn silage may be more consistent. Bob Strong noted that Lee Bork was using alfalfa silage at Word Feed Yard at Larned, Kansas. Bob remembers that Lee said one of the reasons for using alfalfa silage was many times the early summer rains made it difficult to harvest quality first cutting alfalfa hay so they changed to harvesting the crop as silage. High moisture grain stored in silos is a inexpensive way of storage of grain, helps the farmers get the crop harvested quickly with less field losses, and is a very efficient feed ingredient for feedlot cattle. A relationship between feedlots and neighboring farmers that promotes silage production has stimulated the use of silage as a feed ingredient. Another reason for using silage rather than hay, is silage is available at the feedlot during severe weather and power outages. Corn silage is 40 to 50 percent grain and therefore works well for emergency rations. Small grain silages and sorghum silages are also used successfully in feeding programs. Many Types of Structures Tower silos with open tops made out of tile, redwood, steel, cement staves and poured concrete have been used for many generations. Their advantage was a storage of the crops with minimum spoilage. They were labor intensive at filling time and feeding time until forage choppers, unloading wagons, big capacity blowers, and top unloaders came into use with large size tower silos. The disadvantages was the cost of the harvesting and unloading equipment -- not only the initial cost, but the interest and the maintenance cost. Oxygen limited silos, particularly the Harvestor system was developed. The systems allowed for low storage loses. However the same disadvantages of the equipment cost and maintenance still prevailed. Bunker silos have taken over the feedlot industry. Not only for ensiled forages but also high moisture grain. The main advantage of bunker silo system is rapid filling and ease of unloading with front end loaders. But if the bunker is not properly covered, considerable shrink and spoiled feed may developed from the exposed surfaces. With proper covering, the spoilage can be reduced and nearly eliminated. The "Ag Bag" system of storage of a crop in a long tube of plastic has become a popular method of preserving a crop. The advantage is a high quality product can be recovered from the bags if the program is executed properly. Another advantage is shrink and spoilage are very low if the bags are not punctured by rodents, deer or stray livestock. Another advantage of the "Ag-Bag" system is the ease of removing feed from the bags with a front end loader. A minor disadvantage is the filling is slower than filling bunker silos. The cost and maintenance of the specialized loading machine for filling and packing the bag must be weighed against the advantages. Custom operators now are supplying this service to dairy and feedlot operations. A bale of hay silage stored in a shrink wrap bag or plastic wrap is an interesting method for harvesting hay in areas of high rainfall. The advantage of this system is low spoilage and excellent quality feed. The equipment for baling can be used for dry hay as well as the silage in the bag. The disadvantage is cost of the plastic material. ©
Left, this silo is at Hartley, Texas, and was designed by Max Jantz Excavating. Right, this bunker silo is used to store high moisture corn. |
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