Judul: Utilization of Resistant Organic Materials to Improve Soil Physical Properties (Infiltration and Penetrability)
Abstrak: Permasalahan utama tanah di kebun PT. Great Giant Pineapple (GGP) yaitu kandungan bahan organik yang rendah dan terjadinya pemadatan tanah. Pemadatan tanah sampai tahap tertentu dapat diatasi dengan perlakuan mekanik yang memaksa partikel tanah saling menjauh dan pemberian bahan organik untuk memicu proses agregasi tanah dan meningkatkan kemampuan menahan air, meningkatkan nilai infiltrasi tanah dan menurunkan nilai ketahanan penetrasi tanah. Penelitian ini bertujuan mengidentifikasi pengaruh aplikasi serat limbah ekstraksi bromelain dan bambu cacah terhadap infiltrasi dan ketahanan penetrasi tanah pada berbagai dosis bahan organik. Pengukuran infiltrasi konstan dilakukan dengan menggunakan alat infiltrometer dan pengamatan ketahanan penetrasi dilakukan dengan menggunakan alat penetrometer saku dan penetrologger. Kapasitas infiltrasi pada perlakuan limbah ekstraksi bromelain memiliki nilai awal sebesar 44,73 cm/jam pada bulan ke-1 dan nilai akhir sebesar 9,32 cm/jam pada bulan ke-5, sedangkan pada perlakuan bambu cacah memiliki nilai awal sebesar 47,26 cm/jam pada bulan ke-1 dan nilai akhir 15,18 cm/jam pada bulan ke-5. Ketahanan penetrasi tanah pada petak perlakuan bambu cacah memiliki nilai relatif lebih rendah dibandingkan dengan petak perlakuan limbah pemrosesan bromelain pada semua kedalaman pada bulan ke-1, bulan ke-3 dan bulan ke-5. Kurva penetrologger menunjukkan bahwa petak perlakuan limbah ekstraksi bromelain pada bulan ke-3 dan bulan ke-5 memiliki nilai relatif lebih tinggi dibandingkan petak perlakuan bambu cacah. Berdasarkan pengamatan, petak limbah ekstraksi bromelain dan bambu cacah berdampak baik terhadap infiltrasi konstan dan penetrasi tanah., The main problem of soil in PT. Great Giant Pineapple (GGP) namely are low of organic matter content and the occurrence of soil compaction. Soil compaction to a certain extent can be overcome by mechanical treatment which forces soil particles away from each other and the application of organic matter to trigger the soil aggregation process and increase the ability to hold water, to increase the infiltration and lowering the penetration resistance of soil. This study aims to identify the effect of the application of bromelain extraction waste product and chopped bamboo on soil infiltration and soil penetration resistence. Constant infiltration measurements were carried out using an infiltrometer and penetration resistance observations were carried out using a pocket penetrometer and a penetrologger. The infiltration capacity in the bromelain extraction waste product had an initial value of 44.73 cm/hour in the 1st month and a final value of 9.12 cm/hour in the 5th month, while in the chopped bamboo treatment it had an initial value of 43.78 cm/hour in the 1st month and a final value of 15.18 cm/hour at the 5th month. The soil penetration resistance of the chopped bamboo treatment plots had a relatively lower value compared to the bromelain extraction waste product treatment plots at all depths either at the 1st, 3rd or 5th month. The penetrologger curve shows that the plots treated with bromelain extraction waste product at the 3rd month and the 5th month had a relatively higher value than the plots treated with chopped bamboo. Based on observations, bromelain extraction waste product and chopped bamboo application had a positif effect on constant infiltration and soil penetration resistance.
Keyword: amelioran, bromelain extraction waste, chopped bamboo, penetrologger, soil compaction