Purdue University
Agricultural Experiment Station
Lafayette, Indiana
Mimeo DH-73
April, 1958
PRESERVATION OF OATS AS SILAGE
by
D. L. Hill, C. H. Noller, F. A. Martz and N. S. Lundquist, Dairy Department

The practice of making the oat crop into silage is very appealing because it holds the potential for greatly increasing the amount of feed which can be obtained per acre compared to harvesting the crop for grain. The objective in ensiling any green crop is to effectively preserve the nutrients in a palatable condition. Evaluation of a number of oat silages made on Indiana Farms on the basis of pH odor and appearance revealed that the fermentations were faulty. The efficiency of ensiling as a means of storing and preserving the oat crop can be partially evaluated by taking into account the type of fermentation. The chemical and physical properties of the crop change with advance in maturity, and these in turn effect the fermentation which takes place in the silo. Therefore, an investigation was made to determine the effect of stage of maturity and/or additive on the fermentation characteristics of Clintland oats harvested at the boot, milk and soft dough stages.
Materials and Methods
Two separate experiments, one in 1956 and one in 1957, were carried out ensiling Clintland oats at the boot, milk and soft dough stages. Samples (30-50 lbs.) were processed through an Allis Chalmers forage harvester and made into silage using the plastic laboratory silo.(1) In Experiment I the silages were made using no treatment, 60 lbs. of blackstrap molasses per ton or 8 lbs. of sodium metabisulfite per ton. In experiment II the silages were made with no treatment or 8 lbs. of sodium metabisulfite per ton. Throughout the experiment the silos were maintained at room temperature (70-80 F.). Following ensiling individual silos were opened at intervals for evaluation according to pH, titratable acidity, odor and appearance.
In addition observations were made on boot stage forage ensiled without additives in a 30 ton plastic covered stack as well as the three stages ensiled in 50 ton upright, steel silos. The silos were each filled in a day with the exception of dough stage which was slightly longer due to rain. Because the silages were made primarily to test the effect of stage of maturity on nutritive value, 8 lbs. of sodium metabisulfite per ton was used as an additive in order to insure a desirable fermentation.
Results

In all of the laboratory silages no objectionable odors were noted and the physical appearance of all the silages was satisfactory.

The results of the laboratory tests are given in Table 1.
(1)	Walker, B. J., Hill, D. L. and Lundquist, N. S., 1954. A Modified Cryovac Process of Making Grass Silage in the Laboratory Jour. Animal Sci. 13:1013.