Suitability of Oil Palm Plantation on Tunjung Plateau´s Volcanic Parent Material in West Kutai Districts, East Kalimantan, Indonesia

Abstract

The study of Oil Palm plantation suitability on Tunjung Plateau Vulcanic parent materials in Wast Kutai Districts of East Kalimantan, Indonesia, has been done. The soil profile on two different physiographic, i.e.,on almost flate and undulating/hilly topography, was selected. The climate used from available data as close as possible by location, where both climatic data (rainfall, temperature, and relative humidity) and soil profile, laboratory data (routine analyses) used to land evaluation according to FAO soil evaluation system modified by Sys and Van Ranst (1993) and the soil classified using Key to soil taxonomy (USDA, 2022). The suitability classification of Soil with a flat soil topography according to land characteristics (climate, soils, and landscape) of the study area, with the requirements for growing oil palm plants gives the result that flat slope is classified as suitable (S1) and moderately suitable (S2t) by topographic limiting factor. Soil of the study area has highly developed and show low activity clay (CEC clay less than 16 C mol (+), classified as Humic Kandiperox  (flat area/slope 0%) due to the soil has 17.39 % organic carbon content between the mineral soil surface and a depth of 100 cm and Andic Kandiperox on slope 11 % (undulating/hilly) which mean that the soil has Isohyperthermic temperature regime and perudic soil moisture regime, Ochric epipedon, Oxic and Kandic subsurface Horizon which have ECEC of less than 1.50 cmol (+) per kg clay,  pH (1N KCl) of 5 or more on undulating topography and pH (1N KCl) of less than 5 on plate area.