Commodity development requires site selection which should be established prior to large scale development. The land suitability criteria for cashew are not presently available. The relationship between the biophysical aspects, especially land and soil with commodity productivity, is also not known in depth. The objective of this study is to establish the criteria of land suitability for cashew in Indonesia, based on its production and land characteristics. Cashew plantations in 5 provinces were sampled. The data of production per tree per year were obtained from farmers, while the soil was sampled and analyzed in the laboratory. Age-adjusted cashew production was used as the yield response and plotted against land characteristics. Boundary lines resulting from the scatter of points were described; these lines produced the limits of land suitability criteria. The criteria were established using a projection of the intersection between the boundary line and yield interval. The criteria were also built in accordance with the productivity index of FAO for the internal boundary inside the S (suitable) class and by calculating the break-event point production for the boundary between S (suitable) and N (nonsuitable) order. The main result of this research is land suitability criteria for cashew.

ABSTRAKMikoriza merupakan agens hayati yang dapat meningkatkan efisiensi penggunaan pupuk kimia (anorganik) karena dapat meningkatkan ketersediaan unsur hara tanah. Penelitian bertujuan mengevaluasi efektivitas mikoriza dan pupuk NPKMg terhadap pertumbuhan dan hasil tanaman kopi muda di lapangan. Penelitian dilaksanakan di KP. Pakuwon, Sukabumi, Jawa Barat, mulai Januari 2013 sampai November 2014. Perlakuan yang diuji adalah penggunaan mikoriza 3 taraf: tanpa mikoriza, 200 spora/pohon, dan 400 spora/pohon; dan pemberian pupuk NPKMg, 4 dosis (dosis rekomendasi, ¾, ½, dan ¼ dosis rekomendasi). Perlakuan disusun dalam rancangan acak kelompok, 3 ulangan dengan ukuran petak 4 pohon. Dosis rekomendasi adalah pemberian pupuk NPKMg sebanyak 140 g/pohon/tahun (40 g urea, 50 g SP-36, 30 g KCl, dan 20 g kieserit). Pupuk NPKMg diberikan dalam 2 tahap, sedangkan mikoriza diaplikasikan dua bulan setelah pemberian pupuk NPKMg yang pertama. Parameter yang diamati meliputi karakter vegetatif (tinggi tanaman, diameter batang, dan jumlah cabang) dan generatif (hasil kopi) serta tingkat infeksi mikoriza pada akar kopi. Hasil penelitian menunjukkan pemberian kombinasi mikoriza 400 spora dan 105 g NPKMg per pohon/tahun menghasilkan pertumbuhan tanaman kopi terbaik sampai umur 15 bulan setelah tanam, tetapi belum berpengaruh terhadap produksi kopi. Pemberian inokulum mikoriza sebanyak 200 dan 400 spora/pohon memperlihatkan tingkat infeksi mikoriza yang sama pada akar kopi pada semua pemberian dosis pupuk.Kata kunci: Kopi Arabika, mikoriza, pupuk NPKMg/tree/years (40 g urea, 30 g KCl, and 20 g kieserit ABSTRACT Mycorrhiza is a biological agent that could improve the efficiency of chemical fertilizers (inorganic) due to it can increase the availability of soil nutrients. The study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of mycorrhiza and NPKMg fertilizers on growth and yield of coffee plants in the field. The research was carried out at KP. Pakuwon, Sukabumi, West Java, from January 2013 to November 2014. The treatments that examined in this study were 3 levels of mycorrhiza application (M0, without mycorrhizal fungi; M1, application of 200 spore/tree; and M2, application of 400 spore/tree), and 4 dosage of NPKMg fertilizers (F1, recommended dose, RD; F2, ¾ RD; F3, ½ RD, and F4, ¼ RD). The treatments were arranged in a ramdomized block design with 3 replications, and the plot size consisted of 4 coffee plants. The recommended dose of fertilizer is 140 g

<p>RINGKASAN<br /><br />Lada merupakan salah satu komoditas ekspor tradisional penting Indonesia. Capaian produktivitasnya secara nasional masih rendah (&lt; 1.0 ton/ha), di bawah produktivitas negara penghasil utama lada lain seperti Vietnam, Brazil dan Malaysia. Banyak faktor yang diperkirakan berkontribusi terhadap rendahnya produktivitas. Faktor tersebut dapat berupa kendala teknis maupun non teknis. Di antara sejumlah kendala teknis, aspek agronomi seperti kebiasaan petani menggunakan tajar pendek (+3.0 m), pemupukan dan pemangkasan yang tidak optimal diduga kuat berkontribusi terhadap masih rendahnya capaian tersebut. Penggunaan tajar tinggi (&gt; 5 m) disertai pemangkasan optimal, baik terhadap tanaman pokok lada maupun tajar hidupnya sangat berpotensi meningkatkan produktivtas rata-rata lada nasional lebih dari 1,5 ton/ha/th. Produksi dan produktivitas lada nasional diharapkan dapat lebih besar lagi apabila disertai penerapan aspek budidaya menanam lada lebih dari satu pohon per tajar. Sosialisasi dan penerapan ketiga aspek budidaya lada tersebut pada tingkat lapang secara terencana dan berkesinabungan diharapkan dapat meningkatkan produksi dan produktivitas lada nasional.<br />Kata kunci: Lada, produktivitas, tajar hidup, pemang-kasan<br /><br />ABSTRACT<br />Strategy in Increase Productivity of Black Pepper With High Supports, Intensified Pruning and Its Adoption Possibility in Indonesia</p><p><br />Black pepper is an important and traditional export commodity of Indonesia. The mean productivity of Indonesian black pepper is low (&lt; 1 ton/ha) which is much lower than those of other producing countries such as Vietnam, Brazil and Malaysia. There are number factors influencing the low productivity of black pepper vines in the country, both technical and non-technical constraints. Among them, agronomic aspects such as the use of short supports or standards of about + 3.0 m in height, and unintensified pruning of both black pepper vines and its live supports are believed to contributing low in yields of the crop. In other words, the use of live supports with height of more than 5.0 m, followed by intensified pruning of black pepper vines and its live supports are able to increase the mean national productivity of the crop of higher than of 1,5 tons ha/year. Higher in yields or productivity of black pepper vine may be achieved if farmers not only adopt the two agronomic aspects but also other recommended cultural practices do. Hence, socialization and implementation of the improved cultural practice technologies for the crop is needed in the future, in turn, higher in yield or productivity of the crop as well as income of farmers be achieved.<br />Keywords: Black pepper, productivity, live supports, pruning</p>

<p><strong>The effect of living post and pepper vines primings on the pepper yield</strong></p><p>To obtain good yield of pepper, farmers fequently apply various treatments to their crops, including pruning of the pepper vines and or their living post. Studies on the aspects of the pruning ae however very limited. Therefore a ield experiment was conducted to investigate the effects of pruning of pepper vines and their living post on the pepper yield. The experiment was carried out at Sukamulya Research Station, Sukabumi. A split plot design with three rcplicaties was used. The main plot was the pruning of living post, and the sub plot was the pruning of pepper vines Plot size was 20 plants per plol wilh spacing of 2.5 m x 2.5 m Results showed that there was signiicant interaction between the pruning of living post and pepper vines. The pruning of living post may be carried out either 3 times (October, January and April) or twice (October and January) a year. However. If the pruning of the living post is carried out 3 times per year, Ihe vine would be pruned once a year or not at all. On the other hand, if the pruning of living post is carried out twice a year, the pepper vines would be pruned 6 times a year.</p>