The role of plant species diversity in maintaining ecological balance in oil palm plantation

Abstract

The level of plant species diversity in oil palm plantations is thought to be decreasing in number. The existence of other plant species is considered to be a competitor for oil palm plants in obtaining water and plant nutrients. Thus, the diversity of plant species gets less attention because they are considered to have no role. We address this problem by analyzing the level of plant species diversity and the role of plant species diversity in maintaining the ecological balance in the plantation environment. This research was conducted on 4 types of landcover in TPR oil palm plantations (young growth, medium growth, old growth, HCV) and 2 smallholder oil palm plantations, by vegetation analysis with the single plot method. The results showed that the number of species on the research site was 49 species. The highest value of species richness and diversity was obtained in smallholder oil palm plantations (Dmg=3.11 and H′=2.18), while the highest evenness value was found in old growth (E=0.79). Based on the literature study, there were 23 species that have a direct ecological role in oil palm plantations. The ecological role of plants in oil palm plantations are as a ground cover for regulating soil moisture (4 species), producing litter for nutrient formation (5 species), fertilizing the soil and absorbing toxins (3 species), regulating water management and preventing erosion (3 species), increase soil carbon stocks and groundwater availability (2 species), animal feed (5 species), feed for wildlife (6 species), control pests and diseases (4 species), etc. The ecological role of this plant species will have a positive impact on oil palm plantations, especially in maintaining soil fertility, availability of groundwater, providing feed for animals, and also as biopesticides for oilpalm plants to avoid pests and diseases.