AlO-Lancaster Farming, Saturday, October 10, 1992 OPINION Beware Of Deadly Silo Gases Did you ever consider a silo full of freshly chopped com silage as a potential death trap? Jennie Hess Brown, York Extension agent says complex chemcial reactions involved in the formation of silage give off lethal nitrogen gases and carbon dioxide. The nitrogen gases (predominantly nitro gen dioxide) present the greatest threat in and around upright silos. No one ever should enter an oxygen-limiting silo because there never is enough air to support life. Avoid breathing silo gas. Two or three breaths of strong gas can permanently damage the lungs. Staying in the gas may seem okay because you lose the smell. Several hours may pass before serious problems occur. Silo gas has a disagreeable odor which has been described by some as being bleach-like. The color may range from red through orange to dark brown. Silo gas is heavier than air so it will settle to the lowest area. It will settle on top of the silage or drain down into the silo room if silo doors are open. In the silo room or bam, it becomes a hazard to both man and beast. Follow the precautions: stay out of the silo for at least two weeks after filling, if at all possible. If you must enter to level out the silage, do it immediately after filling and leave the blower running while you are there. Keep the doors between the silo room and the main bam closed, but open all windows and exterior doors of the silo room to allow fresh air to enter. If you experience any coughing or throat irri tation in the silo, get out immediately and seek medical attention. If a person becomes disabled in the silo and you suspect silo gas - do not enter the silo - call emergency medical personnel at once and start the blower if it is still at the silo. The life you save may be your own or the life of a family member. Farm Forum Editor: Dr. Benjamin Spock sold out the welfare of the American child ren to a miniority group known as “The Coalition to Eliminate Ani mal Agriculture”. The group is quite obviously sponsoring this most recent milk scare. This is evident when one reads the front page of September 30th Reading Times, and I quote: “Spock made Farm Calendar . v Saturday, (Hlolht 10 National 4-M Work Eastern Pennsylvania 4-H Beef and Lamb Sale, Allentown Fairgrounds, 10 a.m. _ Sunda\, Oclolut II Moiulav, October 12 Columbus Day Sire Power Sale ’92, Penn State Ag Arena. Dairy Breeding Management Dis cussion Group meeting, Kinzer Delmarva Poultry Industry, Inc. annual meeting, Delmarva Convention Center, Delmar, Md. Dillsburg Community Fair, thru October 17. Pennsylvania Dairy Promotion Program, Holiday Inn, Denver. ADC District 9 meeting, Bemville Basic Arboriculture, Fairmount Park, Phila., thru October 16 and October 19-23. “Starting a Small Business,” Mey er’s Family Restaurant, Quakertown, 7 p.m.-9:30 p.m. Red Rose 4-H Beef Club, Lancas ter Farm and Home Center, 7:30 p.m. his remarks prior to an appearance before a meeting in Boston of the Physicians’ Committee for Responsible Medicine, a group that promotes preventive medi cine and alternatives to medical research on animals”. It’s a stretch to suggest that this has anything to do with our children drinking milk. What should truly concern all of us is the news media’s obvious attempt to sensationalize this. (Turn to Page AIS) National Meeting on Poultry Health and Processing, Shera ton Ocean City, Ocean City. Md., thru October 16. Ag Issues Forum, Kreider’s Restaurant, 7:30 a.m.-9 a.m. 4-H Leadership in Action, Canaan Valley, West Virginia, October 15-18. Maryland State Grange Session, Venice Inn, Hagerstown, Md. American Dairy Association and Dairy Council annual meeting, Sennett Federated Church, Sen nett, N.Y., 7:30 p.m. Lancaster County 4-H Swine Club banquet, Bird-in-Hand Family Restaurant, Bird-In-Hand, 6:30 p.m. Adams County Holstein Associa tion Banquet, Gettysburg Fire Hall. 7 p.m. ADA/DC District 4, Greenwich Elk Lodge, Greenwich, NY, 7:30 p.m. ADA/DC District 6, Club 211, West of Middletown, NY, 7:45 p.m. ADA/DC District 12, Sennett Fed eral Church, Sennett, NY, 7:30 p.m. Pesticide Test, Schuylkill County Cooperative Extension Office, 9,a.m.-noon. To Protect Stored Corn From Insects Com harvesting time is fast approaching. As the grain goes into storage, one of our concerns is to protect it from insect damage. There are two major insects to be concerned about One is the foreign grain beetle. It does not feed on the grain but on fungi and molds. These beetles are more of a problem when com is stored wet, poorly aerated, and not cooled down. The other insect, the Indian Meal Moth, feeds on com. It webs com together with fine silken threads. To protect com from these two insects, thoroughly clean the stor age facilities and areas around them. Also, clean augers and harvesting equipment Then spray all surfaces with an insecticide to kill any lingering pests. Be sure the com is clean and dry before going into storage. Then aerate it well and drop the tempera ture to about 40 degrees. Spraying the surface with an insecticide will provide additional protection. Make sure any pesti cide you use is labeled for com and follow all label instructions, espe cially holding times, before feed ing to animals. To Keep Maintenance Records Keeping records is a necessity in any business. Farming is no exception. Recordkeeping for the IRS is S;ituid;n. Ociolur 17 Keystone Autumn Classic Sale, Woodside Farm. Schuylkill County Cooperative Extension annual banquet. Pine View Acres, Pottsville, 6 p.m. Second annual Harvest Fest of York County Farmland Trust, Brown’s Orchard and Farm Market, Loganville, 9 a.m.-4 p.m. “Pennsylvania’s Finest Tailgate” Promotion, Penn Stale’s Beav er Stadium. 9 a.m. «««*! I Sunday, Oclolht IS Cambria County Dairy Club Ban quet, extension office, 12:30 Flower Growers’ Day, Penn State, Keller Conference Center, Uni versity Park. ADA/DC District 1, St. Lawrence Inn, Canton, NY, 7:30 p.m. ADA/DC District 14, Tally Ho ■QBfIBSIBHi Perennials Conference, Swar thmore College. Ephrata Area Adult Farmers meet ing, Ephrata High School Ag (Turn to Pag* A 26) required. But keeping, records of other things on the farm will help in making many management decisions. Good records also help the far mer take better care of his equipment Dr. James Garth, Penn State agricultural engineer, said, ‘The owner’s manual and a complete service log should be kept for each piece of equipment on the farm.” The owner’s manual tells us how often to change oil, lubricate mov ing parts, check belts for proper tension and wear, and how to make adjustments necessary for efficient operation. The service log records tell us when things were done. This eli minates the need to guess when the equipment was last serviced or when repairs were made. One of the major keys of profita bility is longevity of equipment. The best way to extend the longev ity of your equipment is to follow the instructions in the owner’s guide and keep a service log. LOOKING ON THE HEART October 11,1992 Background Scripture: 1 Samuel 16:1-13; 2 Samuel 2:1-7: 5:1-5. Devotional Reading: 1 Samuel 16:1-13, King Saul was an impressive looking man. He probably would have done well in politics today. He was tall and attractive and had the look of a leader. But, although Saul looked the part, the reality was that he was a failure asldng of the twelve tribes. Eventually, God said to Samuel, the prophet, “I have rejected him from being king over Israel” (1 Sam. 16:1). What was wrong with Saul? It was not that he did not have the gifts to be king. He was capable, but he was lacking in character. In his heart there was a void and all the talents he possessed and all his impressive physical features could not make up for it. Saul, the man who had been reluctant to be king, now wanted nothing else. His ini tial humility had quickly turned to selfish arrogance. He probably could have been a great king, but instead of using the royal power for the sake of the people, he hoarded it for himself. So, now God comes to Samual, telling him that he is to anoint a new king over the twelve tribes. Of course. Saul is still king, so we can appreciate that Samual is fear ful of Saul’s wrath. God instructs him to carry out his commission secretly. Go to Bethlehem as if to perform a sacrifice and ask the locals to join with you. While doing this, God will reveal to you his choice as the new king. DO YOU COME PEACEABLY? The response of the elders of Bethlehem is interesting: “Go you come peaceably?”, they ask Samuel. Apparently, Samuel’s reputation as the prophet of God causes them to stand in awe. Wherever and whenever Samuel is doing the work of the Lord there is likely to be something disturb ing going on perhaps some change; that’s always disturbing! Samuel’s not the kind of man who comes to drop in for a cup of tea. What does he want with us?, they wonder. It appears that the ensuing dia logue between God and Samuel is To Understand Part Per Billion (PPB) Today we have the ability to detect traces of materials or chemi cals at the part per billion or part per trillion level. This is an extremely small amount that until recently would go undetected. The following example should help you better understand what a part per billion is. If one aspirin was dissolved in 96,000 gallons of water, you would have one part per billion. If you drank one gallon of water each day, it would take over 260 years to consume that one aspirin tablet. At the one part per trillion level, you would have to dissolve one aspirin tablet in 96 million gallons and live over 260,000 years to con sume that aspirin by drinking one gallon per day. Feather Profs Footnote: "A people that values its privileges above its principles soon loses both." Dwight D. Eisenhower an inner dialogue and the Beth lehemites do not realize that a momentous process is taking place. They think it is all part of the ritual. Only Samuel is aware of what is happening. So, God can act mightily in our midst without our being aware of it. In reality this was an event that would change the whole course of Israel’s history, but it was taking place at the level of a prayer conversation in Samuel’s mind. You and I may sometimes dis count our silent prayer conversations with the Lord, but Samuel did not. JUST A YOUTH When the sons of Jesse begin to pass before him, Samuel tries to - determine which of these the Lord „ has chosen. And he decides as most of us would decide, by appearance. Eliab looked tike the right rtlan, but God said, ”Do not" look on his appearance or on the height of his stature, because I ■ have rejected him” (16:7). This was also true of Abinadab and Shammah. This may have temper-, arily stumped Samuel,, but then it occurs to him to ask Jesse; “Are ■ all your sons here?” Well, said Jesse, “There remains yet the youngest, but behold, he is keep ing the sheep” (16:11). We can well understand why Jesse didn’t think it important to present David to the prophet. After all, David was just a youth and the extent of his capabilities at present was tending sheep. Thai’s the way it looked to Jesse and that is the way it would look to most of us. But the standards by which wc choose our leaders must be some what less than satisfactory, if you consider some of the mistakes wc have made over the centuries or il you consider some of the criteria by which some people will vote for the next President of the United States. The problem, as God puts it to Samuel, is that “the Lord sees not as man sees; man looks on the out ward appearance; but the Lord looks on the heart” (16:7). And it is what is in the heart that makes the difference! Lancaster Farming Established 1955 Published Every Saturday Ephrata Review Building 1 E. Main St. Ephrata, PA 17522 by Lancaster Farming, Inc. A SMnrmn fnlrprfra Robert C. Campbell General Manager Everett R. Newiwanger Managing Editor Copyright IMS by UncaMcr Farming
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers