Silage DIY! Simple Guide To Store Silage For Your Goats!

With El Niño and long dry spell becoming more frequent, it is wise for farmers who raise ruminants, both large and small, to be prepared for the eventuality when the drought would turn the grass in the fields brown.
The best way is make Silage using whatever available materials are in your farm or near your farm.
The best silage material, of course, is Corn but given the very high cost of seeds and the fact that you could only harvest silage once, Corn is an expensive option.
The second best silage material is Sorghum because the stalks and leaves remain green at harvest and that it grows ratoon, at least twice after the first cutting.
Besides, Sorghum is drought-tolerant and you could use the grains as well to feed your chicken or ducks.
Other materials which could be used as Silage include Pakchong, Napier and even sugarcane tops.
In making Silage, the farmer does not need to buy the expensive anaerobic silage bags which cost about P90 each.
Instead, he could just make use of the empty feed sacks with plastic lining, an empty plastic drum or a bunker.
Use a mechanical chopper to cut the stalks and stuff these in the bags, drums or bunker.
If the farmer does not have a mechanical chopper, he could manually chop the stalks in cuts of no more than 4 inches, using a bolo.
Remember: Do not mix anything with the silage during the fermentation process as it would spoil the silage.
After 15 days, the fermented silage would be ready to be fed to your cattle, carabao, goats or sheep.
The Silage, when well kept and anaerobic could be stored for up to five years.
When the farmer has a stored silage, he will no longer be concerned of the changing climate or the long drought.

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