SHIFA NURAZIZA, MUJI RAHAYU* AND EDI PURWANTO
Department of Agronomy, Graduate School, Faculty of Agriculture, Universitas Sebelas Maret, Surakarta, 57126, Central Java, Indonesia
*(e-mail: mujirahayu@staff.uns.ac.id; Mobile: +62812 1552911)
(Received: August 2, 2024; Accepted: September 17, 2024)
ABSTRACT
Mentik Wangi rice is local rice from Central Java, Indonesia, that is in demand by the community because it has various advantages. Still, drought stress has an unfavourable impact such as decreased production. One strategy to deal with this problem is administering paclobutrazol to increase plant resistance during drought conditions. This study aimed at determining the effect of paclobutrazol on the physiological response and yield of Mentik Wangi rice under drought stress. According to research, drought stress had a significant effect on proline content, relative water content, stomata opening width, number of panicles, weight of 100 seeds and weight of filled grain per clump. Meanwhile, paclobutrazol significantly affected chlorophyll a, total chlorophyll, number of stomata, stomata length, number of panicles and weight of 100 seeds. Therefore, the application of paclobutrazol can be one strategy to increase plant resistance during the occurrence of drought periods.
Key words: Mentik Wangi, paclobutrazol, drought, chlorophyll, panicles