A Site-Specific Fertilizer Recommendation Based on the Phosphorus and Potassium Status in Mempawah District, West Kalimantan

Abstract

The recommendations of Phosphorus (P) and Potassium (K) fertilization for rice are still not site-specific yet due to a lack of required soil data information. The P and K status of the paddy fields that provide information on the low, medium, and high P and K nutrient status are very useful for determining recommended the site-specific fertilizer in the the district area. The purpose of the research was to determine the site-specific fertilizer recommendation for paddy field based on their P and K status. This research was based on the field survey and the soil analysis in the laboratory. The soil samples were taken using a grid system, and the P and K levels were assessed by using a 25% HCl extraction. Soil samples were taken in a composite manner on all paddy fields in which their status have been identified. The composite soil samples were determined from 10 - 15 individual samples (sub-samples) with a sampling distance of each sub-sample of 25-50 m in the field. The soil samples were taken in the overlay with a depth of 0-20 cm. Taking sub-samples were done by a diagonal or a zigzag method according to the conditions of paddy fields. The results of the study presented that the nutrient status of P and K and the fertilizer recommendations in paddy fields for rice plants located in 9 sub-districts in Mempawah Dsitrict had shown that nutrient status of P, on average, were from moderate to high levels, meanwhile, the nutrient status of K was from low to high levels. Recommendations for fertilizing rice fields in several sub-districts in Mempawah Regency are mostly 150 kg NPK (15:15:15) ha-1, 200 kg Urea ha-1 and 25 kg KCl ha-1.

Keywords

• fertilizer recommendation
• nutrient status
• paddy fields
• site-specifik location