GROWTH AND YIELD OF SWEET POTATOES ON THE USE OF MANURE AND APPLICATION OF THE CUTTING KNOT MODEL IN MAROS DISTRICT

Abstract

The research conducted examined the use of manure and the cutting node model in sweet potato cultivation. The stage of land preparation before cultivating sweet potato plants is highly recommended to use organic fertilizer, but this has not been done by farmers optimally. Meanwhile, modeling the base of the cuttings to resemble a certain shape when planting is one of the local wisdoms in Maros district in planting sweet potatoes which has been carried out by farmers for generations.   The research was conducted in Rompegading Village, Cenrana District, Maros Regency, South Sulawesi Province. This research used a two-factor randomized block experimental design.  The first factor is the application of manure such as goat, cow or duck droppings and the second factor is making a cutting node model that resembles the number 8, the letter Q, and the letter J. The parameters observed are: 1) Growth parameters consisting of: branch length, number of branches , number of leaves, and crown weight, 2) Production parameters consist of: number of tubers and tuber weight. The results showed that all treatments were not significantly different.  However, it can be seen that the results of using goat manure using a J-shaped cutting node model are better than other treatments.