Domestication of Euterpe oleracea (Arecaceae) to provide food from peatlands

H.L. Tata*, D. Rachmanadi, A. Suwarno, P. van der Meer, L. Hein

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceedingConference paperAcademicpeer-review

Abstract

Euterpe oleracea (Arecaceae), which is known as Acai, is a palm tree originating from swampy forest of Suriname.Acai is naturally distributed in swampy, sandy soil, river edges and seasonally flooded habitats; hence it is considered as paludiculture species.Acai's domestication study in Indonesia is limited, therefore our study aimed to assess morphology and germination of Acai's seeds in the nursery, and early growth performance in the field.Acai's seed diameter was ranging from 0.88±0.01 cm; seed wet weight was 1.19±0.31 g.Acai seeds germinated for up to 5-7 months.Soaked seeds in warm water overnight had 8.33% germination rate, while soaked seeds in tap water overnight had lesser germination rates (1.75%).After one year transplanted to a peat swamp forest ecosystem of Tumbang Nusa, Central Kalimantan, Acai's seedlings had 100% survival rate.The relative growth rate of height and diameter of Acai seedlings were 4.21 cm month-1 and 0.08 cm month-1, respectively.Acai seedlings survived floodings that occurred in November 2021 to March 2022.The water level was around-35.6 to 17.7 cm.Despite of some challenging, açai is a promising species to be domesticated on degraded peatlands.

Original languageEnglish
Title of host publicationProceedings of the 4th International Conference on Tropical Silviculture (ICTS) 2023
PublisherIOP Publishing
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 18 Mar 2024
Event4th International Conference on Tropical Silviculture, ICTS 2023 - Bogor, Indonesia
Duration: 24 Aug 202324 Aug 2023

Publication series

NameIOP Conference Series: Earth and Environmental Science
PublisherIOP Publishing Ltd.
Volume1315
ISSN (Print)1755-1307

Conference/symposium

Conference/symposium4th International Conference on Tropical Silviculture, ICTS 2023
Country/TerritoryIndonesia
CityBogor
Period24/08/2324/08/23

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