Pengaruh Dosis Pupuk Organik Cair (POC) Urine Kelinci dan Pupuk KCl terhadap Pertumbuhan Tanaman Garut (Maranta arundinacea L.)

The Effect of Rabbit Urine Liquid Organic Fertilizer (LOF) and KCl Fertilizer on The Growth of Arrowroot (Maranta arundinacea L.)

Abstract

Arrowroot (Maranta arundinacea L.) is an alternative food source that has high potential but has not been cultivated optimally. This study aims to examine the effect of rabbit LOF and KCl fertilizer on the growth of arrowroot plants. The study was conducted at the Tohudan Horticultural Food Crop Seed Garden, Karanganyar, in February–April 2025 using a 4×4 factorial Completely Randomized Design (CRD), consisting of four doses of rabbit urine (0, 150, 250, and 300 ml/l) and four doses of KCl fertilizer (0, 3, 4.5, and 6 g/plant), each repeated three times. The parameters observed included plant height, number of leaves, number of stems, leaf color, root length, fresh weight, and dry biomass. The results of the analysis of variance showed that the application of KCl fertilizer significantly affected most growth parameters such as plant height with a value of 89.18 cm, number of leaves 17.83 strands, and dry biomass weight 127.3 grams. Meanwhile, rabbit urine only showed a significant effect on root length, reaching 78.34 cm. There was no significant interaction between the two treatments on any of the observed parameters. The best treatment combination was obtained by administering 300 ml/l of rabbit urine and 4.5 g of KCl fertilizer per plant, which produced the most optimal arrowroot growth results in terms of leaf and stem number, with a value of 18.67.