The Relationship between Several Biological and Chemical Soil Properties to Maize Productivity in Kecamatan Cibugel, Kabupaten Sumedang

Abstract

Maize was a crucial staple crop and played a pivotal role in the food security. However, the productivity of maize remained insufficient to saturate the market demands. Improving maize productivity can be achieved on the available land by considering the soil characteristic. One of the impediments encountered in the challenges of maize productivity was the lack of information regarding the interaction of biological and chemical soil parameters that influenced maize productivity. This study aimed to investigate the relationship between the biological and chemical characteristics of the soil to maize productivity. The method in this study was descriptive and comparative. The methods in this study were descriptive and comparative. This study was conducted at 18 points located in Cibugel, Sumedang. The land used was a land unit sampling based on slope, elevation, climate, and maize production area. The parameters carried out in this study consist of Azotobacter sp., fungi, soil organic C, total N, and C/N ratio. Soil samples were collected using composite sampling and analyzed in the laboratory. Statistical analysis was conducted by correlation analysis using Smartstat XL and Microsoft Excel 2019. The result showed that there were correlations among various soil chemical and biological properties. Specifically, there were relationships between fungal populations with soil organic C and C/N ratio, and soil pH with total N.