Analysis of the Effects of Potassium Fertilization and Shade Level on Two Kencur Accessions' Yield Quality (Kaempferia galanga L)

Kencur (Kaempferia galanga L.) widely cultivated in shaded dry land because it is one of the plants with a good level of tolerance to shade. The low sunlight intensity will have an impact on the low nutrient uptake because transpiration will be reduced, so the kencur plant needs more nutrients in the soil, particularly potassium. The study aim to investigate the influence of shade and potassium fertilizer in Kaempferia galanga plant. The experimental farm of Agro Techno Park, Faculty of Agriculture, University of Brawijaya, Jatikerto Village served as the site of this study from October 2021 to May 2022. Three replications of a split-split plot were used in this study. The two shade levels that make up the main plot are (N25) for 25% shade and (N50) for 50% shade. The subplots is potassium fertilizer doses with four levels, namely (K0) fertilizer 0 kg ha^-1 K²O; (K120) Fertilizer 120 kg ha^-1 K²O; (K180) Fertilizer 180 kg ha^-1 K²O; and (K240) Fertilizer 240 kg ha^-1 K²O. The sub-plots consist of 2 accessions (A1) Lumajang and (A2) Nganjuk. The parameters that are divided up include chemical content analysis, yield parameters, and shade observation. According to the findings, kencur plants produced their highest yields in 50% shade. Based on the highest EPMC value content, the treatment of 50% shade and application of potassium fertilizer at a dose of 240 kg ha^-1 also demonstrated the best quality of kencur. The results also indicate that the Lumajang accession has lower yields than the Nganjuk accession.