An examination of the correlation between peat soil characteristics and the growth of sago palm (metroxylon sagu)

Sarawak has about 1.6 million hectares ofpeatland and this represents 13% of the state's total land area. Peatlands, in particular the coastal peatlands of Sarawak are very important for agricultural and other land use. Approximately 535,000 ha or about 32% of the total peatland in Sarawak h...

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Main Author:	Asraff Julaihi, Khan
Format:	Thesis
Language:	English
Published:	2004
Subjects:	GE Environmental Sciences
Online Access:	http://ir.unimas.my/id/eprint/14780/1/Asraff%20Julaihi%20Khan%20ft.pdf
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id	my-unimas-ir.14780
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spelling	my-unimas-ir.147802023-03-29T07:48:54Z An examination of the correlation between peat soil characteristics and the growth of sago palm (metroxylon sagu) 2004 Asraff Julaihi, Khan GE Environmental Sciences Sarawak has about 1.6 million hectares ofpeatland and this represents 13% of the state's total land area. Peatlands, in particular the coastal peatlands of Sarawak are very important for agricultural and other land use. Approximately 535,000 ha or about 32% of the total peatland in Sarawak have been converted to oil palm, forest plantation, sago, paddy, pineapple and tapioca plantation. Peat soils are usually waterlogged with very low pH and lack of nutrient contents. Due to these inherent characteristics, they are only suitable for crops with shallow rooting and fibrous root system. Sago palm (Metroxylon sagu) is one of the most intensive agricultural developments on peat. The uniqueness of this plant is its capability to tolerate high acidity and flooding condition in the peat swamps. Because of its natural adaptation, the State government has invested a great deal of money to tap its economic potential on peat. However, the eventual development has brought to light many unanticipated problems, one of which is the trunking ability of the sago palms. In this context, a study was carried out at the Dalat Sago Plantation, in Mukah Division to compare the physical and -chemical properties of peat in relation to the growth pattern of trunking and non-trunking sago palms. The parameters selected for this study were pH, bulk density, degree of humification, soil depth, total ash content, rubbed fibre content, total nitrogen, total potassium, available phosphorus and CEC. The plant growth parameters measured were palm height, dbh, number of suckers and length of the longest frond. The study showed that both the physical and chemical properties differ with peat depth. Better peat properties were found in the trunking plantation plot. For example higher concentration of nutrients (N, P and K) and ash contents were measured in the trunking plot. Further study is nevertheless recommended to determine the relationship between the soil characteristics and the pattern of sago growth and yield. Universiti Malaysia Sarawak, (UNIMAS) 2004 Thesis http://ir.unimas.my/id/eprint/14780/ http://ir.unimas.my/id/eprint/14780/1/Asraff%20Julaihi%20Khan%20ft.pdf text en validuser masters Universiti Malaysia Sarawak, (UNIMAS) Faculty Of Resource Science and Technology
institution	Universiti Malaysia Sarawak
collection	UNIMAS Institutional Repository
language	English
topic	GE Environmental Sciences
spellingShingle	GE Environmental Sciences Asraff Julaihi, Khan An examination of the correlation between peat soil characteristics and the growth of sago palm (metroxylon sagu)
description	Sarawak has about 1.6 million hectares ofpeatland and this represents 13% of the state's total land area. Peatlands, in particular the coastal peatlands of Sarawak are very important for agricultural and other land use. Approximately 535,000 ha or about 32% of the total peatland in Sarawak have been converted to oil palm, forest plantation, sago, paddy, pineapple and tapioca plantation. Peat soils are usually waterlogged with very low pH and lack of nutrient contents. Due to these inherent characteristics, they are only suitable for crops with shallow rooting and fibrous root system. Sago palm (Metroxylon sagu) is one of the most intensive agricultural developments on peat. The uniqueness of this plant is its capability to tolerate high acidity and flooding condition in the peat swamps. Because of its natural adaptation, the State government has invested a great deal of money to tap its economic potential on peat. However, the eventual development has brought to light many unanticipated problems, one of which is the trunking ability of the sago palms. In this context, a study was carried out at the Dalat Sago Plantation, in Mukah Division to compare the physical and -chemical properties of peat in relation to the growth pattern of trunking and non-trunking sago palms. The parameters selected for this study were pH, bulk density, degree of humification, soil depth, total ash content, rubbed fibre content, total nitrogen, total potassium, available phosphorus and CEC. The plant growth parameters measured were palm height, dbh, number of suckers and length of the longest frond. The study showed that both the physical and chemical properties differ with peat depth. Better peat properties were found in the trunking plantation plot. For example higher concentration of nutrients (N, P and K) and ash contents were measured in the trunking plot. Further study is nevertheless recommended to determine the relationship between the soil characteristics and the pattern of sago growth and yield.
format	Thesis
qualification_level	Master's degree
author	Asraff Julaihi, Khan
author_facet	Asraff Julaihi, Khan
author_sort	Asraff Julaihi, Khan
title	An examination of the correlation between peat soil characteristics and the growth of sago palm (metroxylon sagu)
title_short	An examination of the correlation between peat soil characteristics and the growth of sago palm (metroxylon sagu)
title_full	An examination of the correlation between peat soil characteristics and the growth of sago palm (metroxylon sagu)
title_fullStr	An examination of the correlation between peat soil characteristics and the growth of sago palm (metroxylon sagu)
title_full_unstemmed	An examination of the correlation between peat soil characteristics and the growth of sago palm (metroxylon sagu)
title_sort	examination of the correlation between peat soil characteristics and the growth of sago palm (metroxylon sagu)
granting_institution	Universiti Malaysia Sarawak, (UNIMAS)
granting_department	Faculty Of Resource Science and Technology
publishDate	2004
url	http://ir.unimas.my/id/eprint/14780/1/Asraff%20Julaihi%20Khan%20ft.pdf
_version_	1783728164074160128

An examination of the correlation between peat soil characteristics and the growth of sago palm (metroxylon sagu)

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