Concrete is much stronger in compression than tension, so the silo is reinforced with steel hoops encircling the tower and compressing the staves into a tight ring. More hoops are added to strengthen the lower staves.Ĭoncrete stave silos are constructed from small precast concrete blocks with ridged grooves along each edge that lock them together into a high strength shell. Small stave silos can be expanded upward. In bumper crop times, the excess grain is stored in piles without silos or bins, causing considerable losses. In Canada, Australia and the United States, many country towns or the larger farmers in grain-growing areas have groups of wooden or concrete tower silos, known as grain elevators, to collect grain from the surrounding towns and store and protect the grain for transport by train, truck or barge to a processor or to an export port. The tower silo was invented by Franklin Hiram King. However, this may be a disadvantage for items like chopped wood. Bottom silo unloaders are utilized at times, but have problems with difficulty of repair.Īn advantage of tower silos is that the silage tends to pack well due to its own weight, except in the top few feet. Tower silos containing silage are usually unloaded from the top of the pile, originally by hand using a silage fork-which has many more tines than the common pitchfork 12 vs 4-and in modern times using mechanical unloaders. Silos can be unloaded into rail cars, trucks or conveyors. Silos storing grain, cement and woodchips are typically unloaded with air slides or augers. Wood staves, concrete staves, cast concrete, and steel panels have all been used, and have varying cost, durability, and airtightness tradeoffs. Storage silos are cylindrical structures, typically 10 to 90 ft (3 to 27 m) in diameter and 30 to 275 ft (10 to 90 m) in height with the slipform and Jumpform concrete silos being the larger diameter and taller silos. But, I had to do it as I was the older son - I don’t remember my brother eagerly offering, but I’m sure he also did it at times - and my dad didn’t seem to want to make the climb to put up and later take down the filler pipe.Concrete stave silo under construction in 2015 Fear of climbingĪn upright silo demands at some point that they must be climbed. I was deathly afraid of climbing the 36-foot-tall poured concrete silo while growing up on the Oncken farm in Dane county.

In the late 1950’s and 1960’s the blue, glass lined, airtight, steel Harvestore appeared on the scene and literally changed the silage and hay-making scene. Not only did the company sell the blue, distinctive, airtight Harvestores, they sold the story of making quality hay by cutting early and storing properly. I’ve often written that the Harvestore (although expensive) was the major factor in moving farmers to cut hay in early June (rather than late June or July as was customary) thus providing far more nutritious forage (haylage). View Gallery: Silos still stand as monuments to past dairy herds Harvestores changed farming The first silos were mere holes in the ground dug to preserve the entire stock of grass or corn for winter cattle feed. Then came bigger rectangular holes called trench silos, followed by the short, upright structures made of wooden boards fitted together (staves) or concrete and field stone. They are seldom the subject of family memories, nor did I ever hear a farmer brag about his “great silo.”

To the non-farmer they appear much the same - round and tall. Then there are the upright silos that hold the all-important feed that keeps the milk flowing and the milk checks coming. True, many dairy farmers (especially older farmers who had small herds) remember cow’s names and their individual habits and idiosyncrasies.ĭairy barns are a second home for those who work with the animal care routines that are repeated so often that many farmers know more about the barn than the house in which they live. But, cows come and go depending on their milk and reproduction records.Ī very few are remembered for decades via their production, show records and photos. Dairy farmers, former dairy farmers and would-be dairy farmers will always remember the cows, the barns and the farm fields that are such a big part of Wisconsin dairying.

Vintage european farm silo