Increasing the quantity and quality of potatoes by utilizing seed size and fish organic fertilizer

National Research and Innovation Agency Indonesian, Research Center for Horticultural and Estate Crop, Medan, Indonesia

^* Corresponding author: agus196@brin.go.id

Abstract

Potato plants are one of the vegetables that are in great demand by consumers so they have high economic value and needs. The fulfillment of high needs must be accompanied by increased productivity. Increased potato production can be done, among others, by the use of seeds and proper fertilization. This study aims to determine the use of seed size and addition of fish organic fertilizer with inorganic fertilizer efficiency in increasing potato growth and yield. The study is carried out from June until September 2019 in research and assessment installation of agricultural technology, Dolat Rayat District, Karo Regency. The research placed altitude is ± 1,340 m above sea level, and the soil type is Andisol. The research design is a factorial randomized block and consists of three replications. The first-factor treatment is seed size (big >20 g, medium 5-20 g, small <5 g). The second factor is a fish organic fertilizer with efficiency inorganic fertilizer (100% inorganic fertilizer, 50% fish organic fertilizer + 75% inorganic fertilizer, 100% fish organic fertilizer + 50% inorganic fertilizer, and 150% fish organic fertilizer + 25% inorganic fertilizer). The result showed that big and medium seed sizes were able to increase potato growth and yield. Big and medium seed sizes were able to increase plant height by 11.06% and 9.63%, 5,73%, and 4,64% canopy width, 7.30%, and 11.10% leaf area index, and 12.62% and 25.06% yields from small seed size. Adding fish fertilizer with inorganic fertilizer efficiency resulted in growth and yield which is no different from the application of 100% inorganic fertilizer.