Growth and Yield Responses of Zea mays to Different Granule Biofertilizer Applications

Abstract

One of several factors that could increase maize production is the use of biofertilizers produced from microorganisms. The objective of this study was to obtain a granule biofertilizer formulation with Citrobacter murliniae, Raoultella terrigana, and Enterobacter hormaechei bacteria in increasing the growth and yield of several maize cultivar. The research was conducted at the Integrated Laboratory of the Faculty of Agriculture and Animal Science, University of Muhammadiyah Malang and experimental land in Singosari Malang, East Java, Indonesia from November 2020 to April 2021. The treatments were arranged in split plot design and repeated three times. The main plot was the density of Rhizobacteria which consisted of R₀ = without Rhizobacteria, R₁ = density 10⁷, R₂ = density 10⁸, and R₃ = density 10⁹. Sub-plot was maize cultivar consisted of C₁: Pertiwi 3, C₂: Bisi 18, C₃: Bisi 2, C₄: Syngenta NK 6172, and _C5: Pioner P27. Each experimental unit was represented by five sample plants. Results of the study showed that the treatment of bacterial colony density on biofertilizer granules has not been able to increase the growth and yield of maize, except for the average weight of cob and weight of cob without maize on the various cultivar studied.