Evening Republican, Volume 20, Number 131, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 1 June 1916 — PIT SILOS ARE CHEAP AND EASILY FILLED [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

PIT SILOS ARE CHEAP AND EASILY FILLED

(By A. S. NEALE, In Charge of Silo Construction, Extension Division, Kansas State Agricultural College.) During the past year a great many pit silos have been built in western Kansas. This type is suitable only to semiarid or arid sections. There Is a large proportion of the territory lying between the ninety-ninth meridian and the Sierra Nevada mountains that is suitable for the construction of these silos. East of the ninety-ninth meridian they should not be built except in very rare locations, where the land is

quite well drained and there is absolutely no danger of the soil becoming saturated with moisture to such an extent as to cause seepage water. These are round silos, built by digging a trench six to eight inches wide and two feet deep, which is filled with cement, making a concrete collar or curb. The dirt is then excavated inside the curb and on down to the

depth desired, keeping the wall perpendicular and smooth, and plastering with cement plaster to a thickness of three-fourths to one inch over the dirt. These silos can in most cases be built at a total cost of not to exceed SI.OO per ton capacity for labor and materials, and when properly constructed in suitable locations, are per-* manent. They cannot be constructed according to the above plan where the soil 1 is so sandy that it will not stand up. In such cases it is necessary to put in a retaining wall of masonry, the expense of which will usually be ss much as the construction of a silo above ground. These pit silos are not only very economical to build, but they can bo filled very cheaply, as only light engines and cutters are necessary for this purpose. They are particularly to be recommended for the small Isolated farmer of the great plains region, who wishes to own his silo-filling machinery, and whose available capital is limited. To take the silage out a hoisting apparatus, either a swinging crane or an overhead track is used, lifting tho silage in a container with a hinged bottom, so that the feed may be dumped into a wagon box or silage distributor, as desired. In cases where an overhead track Is used, the feed may be taken directly from the container and placed before the animals. The experience of farmers who have been using the pit also Is very satisfactory, and this will undoubtedly be the principal type of silo built in the future in the semiarid sections.

Pit Silo Nearing Completion.

Starting a Pit Silo.