The Utilization of Organic Materials, Zeolites and Sugarcane Compost in Improving Water Retention, Cation Exchange Capacity and Growth of Chili Plants in Sand Land
M. Zayin. Sukri1, Sugiyarto1, Refa Firgiyanto1
1Departemen of Agricultural Production, State Polytechnic of Jember, Jl. Mastrip, Jember, Indonesia
Abstract
Land is one of the basic needs in agricultural cultivation. Considering the vast land area of the coast, there needs to be an accurate thought in utilizing the land area of the coast for an alternative farming business with all the consequences so that its limitations can be overcome. Puger District is one of the districts that has been central to the development of horticultural crops since 15 years ago by utilizing sand in the coastal areas. The problem of chili cultivation in puger is still not optimal because of some problems such as plant growth that is not optimal because it is not supported by adequate nutrition and sufficient water. Therefore, there is a need for technological applications in increasing soil fertility in sand fields in order to optimize agricultural production of horticultural commodities, including by providing organic material, zeolite sand and sugarcane stem compost. The purpose of this research is to get the best dose of organic fertilizer, zeolite and sugarcane compost in improving water retention, and cation exchange capacity and chilli growth in Puger District sand and to get the best interaction dose between organic fertilizer, zeolite and sugarcane compost. This research activity will be carried out from May to November 2018. The research was conducted at the Green House Laboratory of Plants and Bioscience - POLIJE, Jember East Java at an altitude of 90 m above sea level. The design that will be used is the design of RAK with 3 factors. The first factor is the dose of organic fertilizer with a level of 20 tons ha-1 and 40 tons ha-1, the second factor is the dose of zeolite with a level of 20 tons ha-1 and 40 tons ha-1 and the third factor is the compost dose of sugarcane stems with a level of 20 tons ha-1 and 40 tons ha-1. The total combination of treatments amounted to 8 and repeated 3 times with each unit consisting of 4 plant pots so that a total of 96 unit plant pots. Analysis of the experimental results includes physical analysis of the soil such as specific gravity, water retention, freezing content, field capacity, and porosity.
Keywords: Biology, Physical, Chemistry, Fertile, Sand
Topic: Agriculture Engineering and Biotechnology