Losses from top spoilage in corn and forage sorghum silages in horizontal silos

摘要

Corn and forage sorghum silages werestored in small (simulated), farm-scale, bunkersilos for 180 days, and dry matter (DM) andorganic matter (OM) losses; fermentationcharacteristics; and temperatures were measuredat 10, 20, and 30 inches from the originalsilage surface. Sealing the exposed surfacesignificantly increased DM and OM recoveriesin both crops, regardless of depth. Immediatesealing preserved more DM and OM thandelayed sealing, particularly at the 10-in.depth.The unsealed silages from both cropsmaintained dramatically higher temperatureswithin the top 3 ft. than sealed silages. Asexpected, the unsealed silages deterioratedcompletely at 10- and 20-in. depths, and thedelayed-seal, forage sorghum silage showedconsiderable deterioration at the 10-in. depth.The immediately sealed corn silages had betterfermentation profiles than their forage sorghumcounterparts. A mold inhibitor, Top Savor®,increased OM recovery by about 2 percent inthe forage sorghum silage, but had no effect oncorn silage.These results indicate that sealing (covering)silos immediately after filling greatly improvesstorage efficiency and silage quality inthe top 3 ft.