INFLUENCE OF AZOLLA TYPE AND CLOSURE RATE ON THE GROWTH AND YIELD OF LEBAK RICE (ORYZA SATIVA L.)
Indonesia as an agricultural country where the agricultural sector is a strategic sector and has an important role in meeting the food needs of the community. In times of economic crisis, the agricultural sector proved more profitable because it was resilient and able to recover faster than other sectors. The area of swampland in Indonesia is around 34.12 million ha, consisting of 8.92 million ha of tidal marshland and 25.20 million ha of lowland swampland. The area of swampland in South Sumatra Province is 613,795 hectares, which is divided into tidal swamps covering an area of 455,949 hectares and lowland swamps of 157,864 hectares. Of the area of lebak swampland that has been planted covering an area of 120,685 hectares, namely 48,782 hectares of lebak rice fields and 150,000 hectares of gardens. The increase in food production, especially rice, cannot be separated from the role of fertilization as an important input in agricultural intensification. Of the many fertilizers that exist, Nitrogen fertilizer is most widely used to increase agricultural production. Considering that the price of N fertilizer is getting more expensive, one alternative to N fertilizer is to use organic N fertilizer from Azolla plants. Azolla plants immersed in pond fields can increase rice yields by 91% in Thailand as stated by Kumarasinghe and Eskew (1993). Budianta et.al (1994) stated that there are two types of Azollae found in South Sumatra, namely Azolla pinnata var. pinnata and A. pinnata var. imbricata. Based on the things above, a study was conducted to see the influence of Azolla type and closure rate on the growth and yield of lebak rice (Oryza sativa L.). Research on the type and degree of closure of Azolla to examine the influence of Azolla type and closure rate in increasing the growth and yield of lebak rice has been carried out at the Greenhouse of the Faculty of Agriculture, Sjakhyakirti University Palembang from June 2020 to October 2020, consisting of 2 factors: type and degree of closure of Azolla. The first factor consists of 2 types of Azollae, Azolla pinnata var. imbricata and Azolla microphylla. The second factor consists of 4 levels, P0 = no Azolla closure, P1 = Azolla closing rate 50%, P2 = Azolla closure rate 75% and P3 = Azolla closure rate 100%. This research uses a Complete Randomized Design (RAK) with 4 replays. This researcher has 32 units. Statistical analysis was carried out with fingerprint analysis and further tests were carried out with the Smallest Real Difference Test of 5%. The results showed that the closure rate of Azolla was 100% and the type of Azolla pinnata var. imbricata (A2P3) gave the highest grain yield. However, at closing rate of 50% in the two types of Azollae had a noticeable effect on the upper dry weight and dry weight of the roots, the grain weight per panicle, the grain weight per clump and the production per hectare. The best influence is achieved by Azolla pinnata var. imbricata. At a closing rate of 100%. For Azolla 50% yield rate positively affects the upper dry weight and dry weight of the roots, the grain weight per panicle, the grain weight per clump and the production per hectare.
---