Tanaman penutup tanah

Tanaman penutup tanah adalah tumbuhan atau tanaman yang khusus ditanam untuk melindungi tanah dari ancaman kerusakan oleh erosi dan / atau untuk memperbaiki sifat kimia dan sifat fisik tanah.

Tanaman penutup tanah berperan: (1) menahan atau mengurangi daya perusak butir-butir hujan yang jatuh dan aliran air di atas permukaan tanah, (2) menambah bahan organik tanah melalui batang, ranting dan daun mati yang jatuh, dan (3) melakukan transpirasi, yang mengurangi kandungan air tanah. Peranan tanaman penutup tanah tersebut menyebabkan berkurangnya kekuatan dispersi air hujan, mengurangi jumlah serta kecepatan aliran permukaan dan memperbesar infiltrasi air ke dalam tanah, sehingga mengurangi erosi.

Tumbuhan atau tanaman yang sesuai untuk digunakan sebagai penutup tanah dan digunakan dalam sistem pergiliran tanaman harus memenuhi syarat-syarat (Osche et al, 1961): (a) mudah diperbanyak, sebaiknya dengan biji, (b) mempunyai sistem perakaran yang tidak menimbulkan kompetisi berat bagi tanaman pokok, tetapi mempunyai sifat pengikat tanah yang baik dan tidak mensyaratkan tingkat kesuburan tanah yang tinggi, (c) tumbuh cepat dan banyak menghasilkan daun, (d) toleransi terhadap pemangkasan, (e) resisten terhadap gulma, penyakit dan kekeringan, (f) mampu menekan pertumbuhan gulma, (g) mudah diberantas jika tanah akan digunakan untuk penanaman tanaman semusim atau tanaman pokok lainnya, (h) sesuai dengan kegunaan untuk reklamasi tanah, dan (i) tidak mempunyai sifat-sifat yang tidak menyenangkan seperti duri dan sulur-sulur yang membelit.

Tanaman penutup tanah rendah

Tanaman penutup tanah rendah terdiri dari jenis rumput-rumputan dan tumbuhan merambat atau menjalar:

Dipakai dalam pola pertanaman rapat: Calopogonium muconoides Desv, Centrosema pubescens Benth, Mimosa invisa Mart, Peuraria phaseoloides Benth, Psophocarpus palustris, Calopogonium cearuleum, Crotalaria mucronata, Mucuna bracteata.
Digunakan dalam pola pertanaman barisan: Eupatorium triplinerve Vahl (daun panahan, godong, prasman, jukut prasman), Salvia occidentalis Schwartz (langon, lagetan, randa nunut), Ageratum mexicanum Sims.
Digunakanuntuk penguat teras dan saluran-saluran air: Althenanthera amoena Voss (bayem kremah, kremek), Indigofera endecaphylla jacq (dedekan), Ageratum conyzoides L (babandotan), Erechtites valerianifolia Rasim (sintrong), Borreria latifolia Schum (bulu lutung, gempurwatu), Oxalis corymbosa DC, Brachiaria decumbens, Andropogon zizanoides (akar wangi), Panicum maximum (rumput benggala), Panicum ditachyum (balaban, paitan), Paspalum dilatum (rumput Australia), Pennisetum purpureum (rumput gajah) .

Tanaman Penutup Tanah sedang (perdu)

Dipakai dalam pola pertanaman teratur di antara baris tanaman pokok: Clibadium surinamense var asperum baker, Eupatorium pallessens DC (Ki Dayang, Kirinyuh)
Digunakan dalam pola pertanaman pagar: Lantana camara L (tahi ayam, gajahan, seruni), Crotalaria anagyroides HBK, Tephrosia candida DC, Tepherosia vogelii, Desmodium gyroides DC (kakatua, jalakan). Acacia villosa Wild (lamtoro merah), Sesbania grandiflora PERS (turi), Calliandra calothyrsus Meissn (kaliandra merah), Gliricidia maculata (johar cina, gamal), Flemingia congesta Roxb, Crotalaria striata DC., Clorataria juncea, L. Crotalaria laurifolia Poir (urek-urekan, kacang cepel), Cajanus cajan Nillst (kacang hiris, kacang sarde) dan Indigofera arrecta Hooscht.
Penggunaan di luar areal pertanaman utama dan merupakan sumber pupuk hijau dan mulsa, untuk penghutanan dan perlindungan dinding jurang: Leucaena glauca (L) Benth (pete cina, lamtoro, kemelandingan), Tithonia tagetiflora Desp, Graphtophyllum pictum Gries (daun ungu, handeuleum), Cordyline fruticosa Backer, Eupatorium riparium REG.

Tanaman penutup tanah tinggi atau tanaman pelindung

Digunakan dalam pola teratur di antara baris tanaman utama: Albizia falcata (sengon laut, jeunjing), Grevillea robusta A Cum, Pithecellobium saman benth (pohon hujan), Erythrina sp (dadap), Gliricidia sepium
Dipakai dalam barisan: Leucaena glauca atau Leucaena leucocephala
Penggunaan untuk melindungi jurang, tebing atau untuk penghutanan kembali: Albizia falcata dan Leucaena glauca, Albizia procera Benth, Acacia melanoxylon, Acacia mangium, Eucalyptus saligna, Cinchona succirubra, Gigantolochloa apus (bambu apus), Dendrocalamus asper, Bambusa bambos.

Tumbuh-tumbuhan bawah (undergrowth) alami pada perkebunan

Banyak usaha telah dilakukan pada beberapa perkebunan, terutama perkebunan karet, dalam memanfaatkan tumbuh-tumbuhan bawah alami untuk melindungi tanah. Tumbuhan yang tidak disukai

Tanaman penutup tanah diperlukan oleh beberapa perkebunan terutama pada perkebunan Kelapa Sawit. Pada awal pembukaan lahan makan dilakukan penanaman pokok kelapa sawit dan saat ini lah peran dari tanaman penutup tanah sangat diperlukan untuk melindungi tanaman baru dari serangan tumbuhan liar yang tidak diinginkan.

Banyak tumbuhan yang termasuk dalam tumbuhan pengganggu atau tidak disukai yang dapat berfungsi sebagai penutup tanah atau pelindung tanah terhadap ancaman erosi. Tumbuh-tumbuhan itu tidak disukai karena sifat-sifatnya yang merugikan tanaman pokok dan sulit diberantas atau dibersihkan dari lahan usaha pertanian: Imperata cylindrica, Panicum repens (lampuyangan), Leersia hexandra (kalamento), Saccharum spontaneum (gelagah), Anastrophus compressus dan Paspalum compressum (tumput pahit).

Referensi

SARE National. Topic: Cover Crops. [1]
Midwest Cover Crops Council. [2] Resources for growers, researchers, and educators.
Hartwig, N. L., and H. U. Ammon. 2002. 50th Anniversary - Invited article - Cover crops and living mulches. Weed Science 50:688-699.
Blackshaw, R. E., J. R. Moyer, R. C. Doram, and A. L. Boswell. 2001. Yellow sweetclover, green manure, and its residues effectively suppress weeds during fallow. Weed Science 49:406-413.
Bohlool, B. B., J. K. Ladha, D. P. Garrity, and T. George. 1992. Biological nitrogen fixation for sustainable agriculture: A perspective. Plant and Soil (Historical Archive) 141:1-11.
Bugg, R. L., and C. Waddington. 1994. Using Cover Crops to Manage Arthropod Pests of Orchards - a Review. Agriculture Ecosystems & Environment 50:11-28.
Cederbaum, S. B., J. P. Carroll, and R. J. Cooper. 2004. Effects of alternative cotton agriculture on avian and arthropod populations. Conservation Biology 18:1272-1282.
CENR. 2000. Integrated Assessment of Hypoxia in the Northern Gulf of Mexico. National Science and Technology Council Committee on Environment and Natural Resources, Washington, DC.[3]
Clark, Andy (ed.). 2007. Managing Cover Crops Profitably, 3rd ed. Sustainable Agriculture Network, Beltsville, MD.[4][5]
Creamer, N. G., M. A. Bennett, B. R. Stinner, J. Cardina, and E. E. Regnier. 1996. Mechanisms of weed suppression in cover crop-based production systems. HortScience 31:410-413.
Dabney, S. M., J. A. Delgado, and D. W. Reeves. 2001. Using winter cover crops to improve soil quality and water quality. Communications in Soil Science and Plant Analysis 32:1221-1250.
Ditsch, D. C., and M. M. Alley. 1991. Nonleguminous Cover Crop Management for Residual N Recovery and Subsequent Crop Yields. Journal of Fertilizer Issues 8:6-13.
Everts, K. L. 2002. Reduced fungicide applications and host resistance for managing three diseases in pumpkin grown on a no-till cover crop. Plant dis 86:1134-1141.
Freemark, K. E., and D. A. Kirk. 2001. Birds on organic and conventional farms in Ontario: partitioning effects of habitat and practices on species composition and abundance. Biological Conservation 101:337-350.
Galloway, J. N., W. H. Schlesinger, H. Levy, A. Michaels, and J. L. Schnoor. 1995. Nitrogen-Fixation - Anthropogenic Enhancement-Environmental Response. Global Biogeochemical Cycles 9:235-252.
Giller, K. E., and G. Cadisch. 1995. Future benefits from biological nitrogen fixation: An ecological approach to agriculture. Plant and Soil (Historical Archive) 174:255-277.
Grafton-Cardwell, E. E., Y. L. Ouyang, and R. L. Bugg. 1999. Leguminous cover crops to enhance population development of Euseius tularensis (Acari: Phytoseiidae) in citrus. Biological Control 16:73-80.
Haramoto, E. R., and E. R. Gallandt. 2004. Brassica cover cropping for weed management: A review. Renewable Agriculture and Food Systems 19:187-198.
Hill, E.C., M. Ngouajio, and M.G.Nair. 2006. Differential responses of weeds and vegetable crops to aqueous extracts of hairy vetch and cowpea. HortSci. 41:695-700.
Jensen, E. S., and H. Hauggaard-Nielsen. 2003. How can increased use of biological N-2 fixation in agriculture benefit the environment? Plant and Soil 252:177-186.(Abst.[6])
Joyce, B. A., W. W. Wallender, J. P. Mitchell, L. M. Huyck, S. R. Temple, P. N. Brostrom, and T. C. Hsiao. 2002. Infiltration and soil water storage under winter cover cropping in California's Sacramento Valley. Transactions of the Asae 45:315-326.
Kobayashi, Y., M. Ito, and K. Suwanarak. 2003. Evaluation of smothering effect of four legume covers on Pennisetum polystachion ssp. setosum (Swartz) Brunken. Weed Biology and Management 3:222-227.
Kuepper, G., and R. Thomas. 2002. "Bug vacuums" for organic crop protection. ATTRA, Fayetteville, AR.
Kuo, S., U. M. Sainju, and E. J. Jellum. 1997. Winter cover crop effects on soil organic carbon and carbohydrate in soil. Soil Science Society of America Journal 61:145-152.
Lal, R. 2003. Offsetting global CO2 emissions by restoration of degraded soils and intensification of world agriculture and forestry. Land Degradation & Development 14:309-322.
Lazzeri, L., and L. M. Manici. 2001. Allelopathic effect of glucosinolate-containing plant green manure on Pythium sp and total fungal population in soil. Hortscience 36:1283-1289.
Lu, Y. C., K. B. Watkins, J. R. Teasdale, and A. A. Abdul-Baki. 2000. Cover crops in sustainable food production. Food Reviews International 16:121-157.
Morgan, M. F., H. G. M. Jacobson, and S. B. LeCompte. 1942. Drainage water losses from a sandy soil as affected by cropping and cover crops: Windsor lysimeter series c. Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station, 1942. p. [731]-759: ill., [New Haven].
Nagabhushana, G. G., A. D. Worsham, and J. P. Yenish. 2001. Allelopathic cover crops to reduce herbicide use in sustainable agricultural systems. Allelopathy Journal 8:133-146.
New Farm, The. Plans for no-till cover crop roller free for the downloading. [7]
Patrick, W. H., C. B. Haddon, and J. A. Hendrix. 1957. The effects of longtime use of winter cover crops on certain physical properties of commerce loam. Soil Science Society of America 21:366-368.
Peoples, M. B., and E. T. Craswell. 1992. Biological nitrogen fixation: Investments, expectations and actual contributions to agriculture. Plant and Soil (Historical Archive) 141:13-39.
Potter, M. J., K. Davies, and A. J. Rathjen. 1998. Suppressive impact of glucosinolates in Brassica vegetative tissues on root lesion nematode Pratylenchus neglectus. Journal of Chemical Ecology 24:67-80.
Rabalais, N. N., R. E. Turner, and W. J. Wiseman. 2002. Gulf of Mexico hypoxia, aka "The dead zone". Annual Review of Ecology and Systematics 33:235-263.
Romkens, M. J. M., S. N. Prasad, and F. D. Whisler. 1990. Surface sealing and infiltration. Pages 127-172 in M. G. Anderson and T. P. Butt, editors. Process studies in hillslope hydrology. John Wiley and Sons, Ltd.
Sainju, U. M., B. P. Singh, and W. F. Whitehead. 2002. Long-term effects of tillage, cover crops, and nitrogen fertilization on organic carbon and nitrogen concentrations in sandy loam soils in Georgia, USA. Soil & Tillage Research 63:167-179.
Shelton, A. M., and E. Badenes-Perez. 2006. Concepts and applications of trap cropping in pest management. Annual Review of Entomology 51:285-308.
Singh, H. P., D. R. Batish, and R. K. Kohli. 2003. Allelopathic interactions and allelochemicals: New possibilities for sustainable weed management. Critical Reviews in Plant Sciences 22:239-311.
Snapp, S. S., S. M. Swinton, R. Labarta, D. Mutch, J. R. Black, R. Leep, J. Nyiraneza, and K. O'Neil. 2005. Evaluating cover crops for benefits, costs and performance within cropping system niches. Agron. J. 97:1-11.
Teasdale, J. R. 1993. Interaction of light, soil moisture, and temperature with weed suppression by hairy vetch residue. Weed sci 41:46-51.
Thiessen-Martens, J. R., M. H. Entz, and J. W. Hoeppner. 2005. Legume cover crops with winter cereals in southern Manitoba: Fertilizer replacement values for oat. Canadian Journal of Plant Science 85:645-648.
Thomsen, I. K., and B. T. Christensen. 1999. Nitrogen conserving potential of successive ryegrass catch crops in continuous spring barley. Soil Use and Management 15:195-200.
Thorup-Kristensen, K., J. Magid, and L. S. Jensen. 2003. Catch crops and green manures as biological tools in nitrogen management in temperate zones. Pages 227-302 in Advances in Agronomy, Vol 79. ACADEMIC PRESS INC, San Diego.
Tomlin, A. D., M. J. Shipitalo, W. M. Edwards, and R. Protz. 1995. Earthworms and their influence on soil structure and infiltration. Pages 159-183 in P. F. Hendrix, editor. Earthworm Ecology and Biogeography in North America. Lewis Pub., Boca Raton, FL.
Vanlauwe, B., O. C. Nwoke, J. Diels, N. Sanginga, R. J. Carsky, J. Deckers, and R. Merckx. 2000. Utilization of rock phosphate by crops on a representative toposequence in the Northern Guinea savanna zone of Nigeria: response by Mucuna pruriens, Lablab purpureus and maize. Soil Biology & Biochemistry 32:2063-2077.
Vargas-Ayala, R., R. Rodriguez-Kabana, G. Morgan-Jones, J. A. McInroy, and J. W. Kloepper. 2000. Shifts in soil microflora induced by velvetbean (Mucuna deeringiana) in cropping systems to control root-knot nematodes. Biological Control 17:11-22.
Zalom, F. G., P. A. Phillips, N. C. Toscano, and S. Udayagiri. 2001. UC Pest Management Guidelines: Strawberry: Lygus Bug. University of California Department of Agriculture and Natural Resources, Berkeley, CA.
[8] "Cover Crops," Cyclopedia of American Agriculture, v. 2, ed. by L. H. Bailey (1911). A short encyclopedia article, early primary source on varieties and uses of cover crops.