Stabilitas Agregat dan Permeabilitas Tanah pada Podsolik dan Latosol Akibat Penambahan Batubara Muda

Abstract

Podsolik merupakan tanah marginal yang banyak dimanfaatkan untuk lahan perkebunan. Secara umum, Podsolik memiliki tingkat kesuburan yang rendah karena kandungan bahan organik tanah yang rendah. Rendahnya kandungan bahan organik tanah semakin jelas jika tanah diolah secara intensif. Pengolahan tanah intensif cenderung menyebabkan kandungan bahan organik tanah menurun. Penambahan bahan organik dilakukan untuk memperbaiki dan mempertahankan kualitas sifat fisik tanah. Namun, pengaruh penambahan bahan organik pada umumnya relatif singkat sehingga kurang efektif untuk pertanian jangka panjang. Aplikasi bahan pembenah tanah tahan lapuk pengganti bahan organik seperti batubara muda dapat menjawab permasalahan tersebut. Suatu penelitian yang bertujuan untuk menguji pengaruh aplikasi batubara muda terhadap stabilitas agregat dan permeabilitas tanah Podsolik dan Latosol telah dilakukan di rumah kaca dengan waktu inkubasi 5 bulan. Penelitian menggunakan rancangan acak lengkap dengan dosis batubara muda sebagai perlakuan penelitian. Dosis batubara muda yang diterapkan adalah lima taraf yaitu 0, 20, 40, 60 dan 80 ton/ha. Hasil penelitian menunjukkan bahwa stabilitas agregat tanah Podsolik lebih rendah dari pada Latosol karena kandungan bahan organik di Latosol lebih tinggi. Permeabilitas tanah Podsolik lebih tinggi dibandingkan Latosol karena persentase kandungan pasir Podsolik lebih dominan. Dengan masa inkubasi 5 bulan, pemberian batubara muda dapat meningkatkan indeks stabilitas agregat dan permeabilitas tanah baik pada Podsolik maupun Latosol. Semakin tinggi dosis, semakin tinggi indeks stabilitas agregat dan permeabilitas tanah.

Podsolic is a marginal soil that is widely used for plantation land. In general, Podsolic has low fertility due to low soil organic matter content. The low soil organic matter content becomes clearer if the soil is cultivated intensively. Intensive soil tillage tends to cause the decline of soil organic matter content. The addition of organic matter can improve and maintain soil physical properties. However, the effect of adding organic matter is generally relatively short, making it less effective for long-term agriculture. Application of resistant soil amendments as a substitute for organic matter such as brown coal might answer the problem. A study aimed at examining the effect of brown coal application on soil aggregate stability and permeability of Podsolic and Latosol was carried out in a greenhouse with an incubation time of 5 months. This study used a completely randomized design with a rate of brown coal as the research treatment. The rate of brown coal application consists of five levels, namely 0, 20, 40, 60 and 80 tons/ha. The result showed that soil aggregate stability of Podsolic was lower than Latosol due to the higher organic matter content in Latosol. Soil permeability of Podsolic was higher than Latosol since the percentage of sand content of Podsolic is more dominant. After 5 months of incubation, the provision of brown coal can increase the soil aggregate stability and permeability in Podsolic and Latosol. The higher the rate of brown coal application, the higher the soil aggregate stability and permeability.