Pengaruh Pemberian Kompos Bungkil Inti Kelapa Sawit dan Pupuk Nitrogen Terhadap Sifat Kimia Tanah dan Pertumbuhan Tanaman Jagung (Zea Mays L.) pada Tanah Inceptisol

Abstract

This study aimed to determine the effect of application of palm kernel meal compost and nitrogen fertilizer and interaction of palm kernel meal compost and nitrogen fertilizer on soil chemical properties and Corn Plant Growth (Zea mays L.) in Inceptisol soil. This research was conducted at the Screen House, Research and Technology Laboratory, Faculty of Agriculture, University of North Sumatera in September – December 2023. The design used in this in this study was arranged in Factorial Randomized Block Design (RAK) with 2 treatment factors and 3 replications. The first factor was palm kernel meal compost which consisted of 4 treatment levels, namely: (B0) control without palm kernel meal compost, (B1) palm kernel meal compost 15 tons/ha, (B2) palm kernel meal compost 30 tons/ha, (B3) palm kernel meal compost 45 tons/ha. The second factor was nitrogen fertilizer which consisted of 2 treatment levels, namely: (N0) control without nitrogen fertilizer, (N1) nitrogen fertilizer 200 ppm N. Parameters observedwere soil organic C, soil pH, Cation Exchange Capacity (CEC), leaf Content N, nutrient uptake N, plant height, stem diameter, and plant dry weight. The research results showed that the application of palm kernel meal compost significantly increases soil organic C, Cation Exchange Capacity (CEC), and leaf Content N with the optimal dose being 45 tons/ha. The application of nitrogen fertilizer and combination of palm kernel meal compost and nitrogen fertilizer does not affect soil chemical properties and corn plant growth.