Effect of Mycorrhizae Biofertilizer to Increase the Growth, Production, and Quality of Patchouli Oil (Pogostemon Cablin Benth.) on Aceh’s Entisols Soil

Abstract

Patchouli (Pogostemon cablin Benth.) is a bushy perennial herb that produces a type of essential oil called patchouli oil. The production and quality of patchouli oil is determined by many factors, such as plant cultivation, nutrition, and pest-disease management. In addition, the soil condition of the planting medium determines the oil production and quality of the patchouli. Especially in lowlands, other obstacles to patchouli production include poor soil fertility and biological, chemical, and physical properties of Entisols with low to moderate soil nutrients, and plant growth will not be supported if cultivation is not managed properly. The use of mycorrhizae as biological fertilizer is expected to increase the production and quality of Aceh’s organic patchouli. This research aims to determine the effect of mycorrhizae biofertilizer on the growth, production, and quality of Aceh’s patchouli cultivated in Entisol soil. This study used a nonfactorial randomized block design with three replications. The factors observed were the application of mycorrhizae biofertilizer, namely Glomus mosseae, Gigaspora cf. gigantea, and a mixture of Glomus mosseae + Gigaspora cf. gigantea. The results showed that the mixture of Glomus mosseae + Gigaspora cf. gigantea provided the best results for growth parameters of plant height (144.65 cm), stem diameter (10.8 cm), number of leaves (337.88), and mycorrhizal root colonization (78.93%) and production parameters of fresh biomass weight (576.90 g) and dry biomass weight (122.74 g). Under normal conditions, Entisol soil has a phosphorus (P) availability of 35.00 mg kgs-1,based on Oslen’s extractable test, and the application of a mixture of Glomus mosseae + Gigaspora cf. gigantea increased the P-available uptake to a range of 45.71–47.32 mg kgs-1 and the oil quality to an oil extraction rate (OER) of patchouli of 2.65 and patchouli alcohol rate of 32.21%. Mycorrhizae biofertilizer in the rhizosphere can promote plant growth, improve nutrient acquisition, and improve the quality of final oil content of patchouli.