Minimum fertilizer for maize cultivation in suboptimal agroecosystem

Abstract

Farmers on suboptimal land are generally economically disadvantaged and need to be supported by low-cost technology. The study aimed to find out a minimum fertilizer package for maize cultivation in tidal agroecosystem. The research was carried out on the tidal agroecosystem overflow type C, on alluvial land, peat, and alluvial + peat mixture in Siak District, Riau Province, Indonesia. Time of study from March to December 2018. The materials used were maize varieties Nasa 29, Bima Uri 19, Bisma and Sukmaraga, Urea, TSP, KCl, farmyard manure, dolomite, locality liquid organic fertilizer (LLOF), grilled ash, biological fertilizers, decomposers, pesticides, herbicides. There are 4 fertilization packages, i.e.: A (high dosage), B (high dosage + LLOF + Grilled ash), C (50% dosage + LLOF + grilled ash), D (low dosage). Experiments were designed using a randomized complete block design and repeated three times. To find out whether farming is profitable or not economically, it is analyzed by using Benefit-Cost Ratio. The results showed that Nasa 29 and Sukmaraga varieties produced the best average growth and yield for all soil types and fertilizer doses of 4.0 t ha−1 and 3.9 t ha−1 dry seeds, respectively. Reducing the dose of chemical fertilizer can be done to improve the ability of farmers to buy fertilizer depending on the type of soil and the availability of LLOF and grilled ash. Mixture of peat and alluvial is good soil for maize growth if combined with fertilizer package B. The reduction of 50% chemical fertilizer dosage (package C) on alluvial+peat soils causes Nasa 29 yields to fall by 2.4 t ha−1 (28%) from 8.6 t ha−1 in full packages B, but still provides a profit of Rp 12,418,000 ha−1 season−1