Abstract
Traditional cultivation of shallot is subject to uncertainty both in productivity and price. This seasonal situation was primarily due to climatic factors. Hydroponics cultivation offers a potential solution to that problem because hydroponics was not dependant to climate. Therefore, production can be maintained throughout a year around. This research aims to design hydroponics system for shallot cultivation, to simulate cost analysis, and to estimate profit. The research was conducted by constructing a hydroponics module with dimension as the following: 100 cm high, 3 m long and 60 cm wide. Growth medium made from rice hush char as deep as 15 cm was used in the module. 114 cloves of shallot were nursed, and transplanted to the bed after shoots developed about 5 cm, with 10x15 cm spacing. Parameters observed in this study included pH, EC, moisture content, and plant growth. In addition, three scenarios of the hydroponics systems were simulated to elaborate cost and profit estimation. The three scenarios included scaling up the cultivation beds, ten year cultivation, and productivity from three types of hydroponics modules. The results showed that during hydroponics cultivation of shallot, EC of nutrient solution was elevated to the last level of 3106 μS/cm, while pH was found to be 7.58. The yield of the shallot was 0.0154 kg/m2 with average tuber diameter of 10-15 mm. This production was suboptimal, yet profit and cost comparisons could be clearly described through the simulations of three types of hydroponics modules. Keywords: cost and profit analysis, hydroponics cultivation, nutrition solution, shallot
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