Farmers Mutual Insurance Association

Silos at a Rock Valley area farm today. Photo by Brett Davelaar, BD Photography.

Concrete or cement staves for use in silo construction were invented in 1905. Clay tile was introduced in 1908 and metal silos were being advertised by 1910. In 1911, in Turner County, South Dakota, the local newspaper reported on the area’s first silo saying: ““Silos are a new thing here and they are all being closely watched by farmers who will build next year if they seem successful.” The Turner County Herald said 20 men were engaged in filling the silo near Hurley. “The corn is cut with corn binders and hauled to the silo where it is fed into a cutter run by a traction engine. After being cut, it is elevated straight up through sheet iron pipe to the top of the silo. Inside three men are kept busy packing the fine corn. It is tramped and every corner is packed. The stalks, leaves, ears and all are cut into fine pieces not over an inch long. It makes a soft pile, damp but not wet and will keep as long as it is not exposed to the air.” The Herald reported an acre of corn could make five to 10 tons of ensilage. The highly-recognizable blue Harvestore glass-fused-to-steel, low-oxygen silo was introduced in 1949. Harvestore silos increased in popularity through the 1960s into the 1970s. Whether it’s true or not, the expense of Harvestore silos is frequently blamed for bankrupting many farmers during the 1980’s farm crisis. While there are staunch defenders of the brand, a brief online search quickly finds long threads of discussion about what some called “blue tombstones” or “monuments to a broke farmer.”

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