Pengaruh Taraf Pemberian Pupuk Majemuk Mineral Alami terhadap Produksi Tanaman Kelapa Sawit (Elaeis guineensis Jacq.)

Abstract

Fertilization is a crucial factor influencing plant growth and productivity in oil palm cultivation. KCl fertilizer can be substituted with mineral fertilizers that also contain potassium. Polyhalite is a natural mineral fertilizer containing K. Potassium plays a crucial role in supporting plant physiological processes such as photosynthesis, protein and carbohydrate synthesis, osmoregulation, and fruit quality development. Potassium deficiency in oil palms significantly reduces fresh fruit bunch (FFB) production. This study aimed to determine the effect of varying levels of natural mineral compound fertilizer application on oil palm production. This study aims to determine the effect of differences in the level of provision of natural mineral compound fertilizers on oil palm production. This study was conducted in Paluh Merbau Village, Percut District, Deli Serdang Regency, North Sumatra Province, (3o43’13.6”N 98o44’28.5”E) starting from September 2023 to July 2024. This research used a non-factorial Randomized Block Design (RBD) which was repeated in 3 repetitions with 5 treatments, namely: Giving 100% Potassium from KCl; 100% Potassium from Polyhalite Fertilizer; 75% Potassium from KCl + 25% Potassium from Polyhalite Fertilizer; 50% Potassium from KCl + 50% Potassium from Polyhalite Fertilizer; 25% Potassium from KCl + 75% Potassium from Polyhalite Fertilizer. The parameters measured were the weight of fresh fruit bunches and the number of fresh fruit bunches of oil palm. The results of the study showed that the difference in the level of administration of natural mineral compound fertilizers had no significant effect on all observation parameters.