MARDI, Kilang Beras Seri Merbok dan BASF lancar Pusat Tani Clearfield® pertama di Asia Pasifik

Alor Setar, 24 Februari 2017 – Para petani dan pesawah kini boleh meningkatkan ilmu pengetahuan dan mendalami teknik penanaman padi melalui Sistem Pengeluaran Clearfield® dengan lebih terperinci hasil penubuhan kompleks Pusat Tani Clearfield® (PTC) yang pertama seumpamanya di Asia Pasifik melalui projek bersama dengan Insititut Penyelidikan & Kemajuan Pertanian Malaysia (MARDI), Kilang Beras Seri Merbok Sdn. Bhd. (KBSM) dan BASF (Malaysia) Sdn. Bhd.

Pusat Tani Clearfield® yang dibangunkan di Kilang Beras Seri Merbok di Alor Setar telah dilancarkan oleh YBhg. Datuk Dr Sharif Haron, Ketua Pengarah MARDI. Turut hadir, Leon van Mullekom, Pengarah Setempat Perniagaan Pertanian BASF ASEAN; Abu Samah Hashim, Ketua Pegawai Operasi KBSM; wakil Kementerian Pertanian dan Industri Asas Tani wilayah utara, ketua-ketua bahagian Jabatan Pertanian Daerah serta pesawah tempatan.

Advertisement

Dabai, Specialty Fruit of Sarawak

Dabai (Canarium odontophyllum) is an indigenous seasonal fruit which grows naturally in the wild and can only be found in Borneo Island, especially Sarawak. It is commonly known as ‘Sarawak olive’ due to its resemblance to olives. However, it is not botanically related to the olive family. It is also called ‘Sibu olive’ since it is found in abundance along the along the Rajang River basin, especially in Sibu divisions in Sarawak.

The dabai tree grows upright (up to 20 m), is medium-sized and has large pinnate leaves. With an economic lifespan of about 40 years, mature dabai trees can yield up to 300 kg of dabai fruit per season, which are May – June and December – January depending on the weather pattern. Dabai fruits can fetch premium prices at the beginning of the harvesting season.

The edible dabai fruits is oblong 3-4 cm long and 2.5 cm wide, and has a thin dark purple to black coloured skin. The yellowish flesh (called aril) is 4-7 mm thick and covers a hard angular seed. Fruits of good quality are characterized by big size, thick aril, nutty aroma and fine creamy texture.

Rice Varietal Development in MARDI For Food Sovereignty

Varietal development has been a mandate to MARDI since the 1970s and until today a total of 45 varieties have been released for planting in the granary areas. The breeding objectives varied in accordance to the needs of the different era. In the 1970’s Malaysia started to implement double-cropping for rice after the Japanese occupation. For successful double-cropping, the varieties must have a maturation period of less than 145 days and be non-photoperiodic. Almost all of the traditional varieties planted at that time were photoperiodic and would not flower until December when the days are shortest.

The first successful non-photoperiodic variety was Mahsuri, developed from a cross between Japonica and Indica, and it was released in 1965. It was an easy shattering variety suited for manual harvesting. Despite its short to medium grain type, it was widely planted because of the excellent eating quality. However, the plants were too tall and prone to lodging. Further, it was susceptible to blast disease. These factors motivated breeders to produce varieties that were shorter and resistant to blast. In the late 1960s and early 1970s, many crosses were made for the improvement of Mahsuri and Ria. Several successful varieties resulted from this programme, including improved Mahsuri, which farmers called by many names such as Apollo, Anak Dara and Mat Candu. Malinja, Mahsuri and Bahagia were accepted by farmers and were planted twice per year, but they were still prone to lodging since their heights were still too tall at 140-150 cm.

BLB kurangkan berat bijirin padi

BLB adalah penyakit vaskular padi yang disebabkan bakteria Xanthomonas oryzae pv oryzae. Jangkitan bermula dari mana-mana bahagian daun terutama dari tepi dan hujung daun.

Ia boleh mengurangkan berat bijirin padi akibat kehilangan luas permukaan daun untuk fotosintesis. BLB juga menyebabkan kehilangan hasil hingga 50 peratus dan menjejaskan kualiti biji padi.

Laporan pertama BLB dikesan pada tahun 1967 dan pada varieti seribu gantang pada awal 1980 an. Wabak BLB yang serius pernah berlaku pada tahun 1988 dan 1994 dengan penanaman varieti yang rentan menyebabkan kehilangan hasil hingga 50 peratus.

Pada 2013, ia berlaku lagi di Sekinchan, Selangor dengan 80 peratus kawasan diserang BLB membabitkan varieti MR 220 CL2, MR 263 dan MR 269.

Aplikasi Mudah Alih MARDI Bantu Petani

Seiring kemajuan zaman, aplikasi telefon pintar hari ini seakan-akan berfungsi sebagai pembantu peribadi kita. Selain menjana teknologi melalui penyelidikan, Institut Penyelidikan dan Kemajuan Pertanian Malaysua (MARDI) memainkan peranan yang sangat penting dalam melaksanakan aktiviti pemindahan teknologi, kompetensi, pengetahuan dan juga perkhidmatan teknikal melalui pelbagai saluran penyampaian.

Selain menjana teknologi melalui penyelidikan, MARDI juga memainkan peranan yang sangat penting dalam melaksanakan aktiviti pemindahan teknologi, kompetensi, pengetahuan dan juga perkhidmatan teknikal melalui pelbagai saluran penyampaian. Peranti mudah alih merupakan saluran penyampaian yang terbaik kepada stakeholder MARDI ketika ini termasuklah petani, penternak dan nelayan. Oleh yang demikian MARDI mengambil inisiatif membangunkan beberapa aplikasi mudah alih untuk menyokong aktiviti pemindahan teknologi, kompetensi serta pengetahuan kepada petani, pengusaha pertanian dan penternakan.

Reducing Paddy Post Harvest Losses

Postharvest  lossess  (PHL)  of  paddy  can  be defined  as  losses  that  occur  due  to  spills, human negligence and incompetence during the postharvest handling operations, inefficient processing system  that  results  in  broken  rice  and  improper storage  resulting  in  unpleasant  odours,  discolouration and insect attacks. Postharvest losses of paddy can be measured quantitatively and qualitatively. Reduction in PHL  of  paddy  is  necessary  to  increase  Malaysia’s  rice self-sufficiency level (SSL). Currently,  the  SSL  of  rice  is  71.5%,  while  the  rest is  imported.  In  1985,  Malaysia  produced  about  1.95 million metric tonnes of paddy with PHL of about 28.5% which was estimated at 557,000 metric tonnes resulting in a revenue loss of RM276 million based on the paddy price at RM496 per metric tonne. The high amount of losses prompted MARDI to conduct a study to determine the causes of PHL and proposed solutions to reduce it.

Kurang Beri Tumpuan Selenggara Jentera Penuai Punca Hasil Padi Berkurangan

ALOR SETAR, 1 Feb – Satu daripada faktor kenapa masyarakat petani kehilangan hasil sebaik padi dituai adalah disebabkan kurang memberikan tumpuan terhadap penyelenggaraan jentera penuai, kata seorang pegawai kanan Institut Penyelidikan dan Kemajuan Pertanian Malaysia (MARDI).

Timbalan Pengarah Program Mekanisasi Lepas Tuai dan Pemprosesan Makanan, Pusat Penyelidikan Kejuruteraan MARDI, Dr. Azman Hamzah berkata, hasil kajian verifikasi di kawasan pihak berkuasa pembangunan pertanian di Kedah, Terengganu dan Kelantan sejak 2014 mendapati 50 kilogram padi bagi setiap lima metrik tan sehektar akan hilang disebabkan faktor tersebut.

Sustainable Food Production Through Fertigation System

Fertigation is an agricultural technique that maximizes crop yield through controlled application of water and fertilizers. This application also ensures that negative effects of fertilizer leaching to the roots, soil and groundwater are avoided. When applied in a soilless system, where substrates and media such as rockwool, perlite, vermiculite or peat are used, cultivation of food crops can be done on infertile lands or urban areas. Elimination of soil also improves yield through prevention of soil-borne diseases and increases multiple growing cycles without the need to replenish nutrients and soil conditioning. Furthermore, fertigation under a rain-shelter system allows cultivation of crops in areas where excessive rain, sunshine or wind inhibits conventional cultivation of the required food crops.