Electronic Theses and Dissertation

Jagung manis (Zea mays saccharata Sturt.) merupakan salah satu komoditas
pertanian penting yang memiliki nilai ekonomi tinggi. Produktivitas jagung manis dapat
mengalami penurunan akibat aktivitas serangga herbivora yang menyebabkan kerusakan
pada bagian tanaman. Pada populasi yang tinggi status serangga herbivora dapat berubah
menjadi hama pada tanaman jagung. Salah satu upaya pengelolaan serangga herbivora yang
ramah lingkungan adalah dengan pemanfaatan tanaman refugia. Tanaman refugia memiliki
bunga dengan karakteristik warna yang menarik serta mampu menyediakan sumber
makanan berupa nektar dan polen sehingga dapat memengaruhi keberadaan dan aktivitas
serangga pada suatu agroekosistem. Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk mengetahui pengaruh
perbedaan warna bunga tanaman refugia terhadap komunitas serangga herbivora pada
pertanaman jagung manis.
Penelitian dilaksanakan di Desa Miruek Lamreudep, Kecamatan Darussalam,
Kabupaten Aceh Besar dan Laboratorium Pengendalian Hayati Fakultas Pertanian
Universitas Syiah Kuala pada bulan November 2025 sampai bulan Mei 2026. Penelitian ini
menggunakan Rancangan Acak Lengkap (RAL) non faktorial dengan empat perlakuan, yaitu
tanpa refugia (R0), bunga berwarna kuning (Tagetes erecta) (R1), bunga berwarna merah
Zinnia elegans (R2), dan kombinasi bunga berwarna kuning (Tagetes erecta) dan merah
(Zinnia elegans) (R3). Pengambilan sampel serangga dilakukan sebanyak enam kali
menggunakan perangkap pitfall trap, sweeping net, dan mekanik. Parameter yang diamati
meliputi komposisi spesies, kekayaan spesies, kelimpahan individu, keanekaragaman,
kemerataan, dominansi, dan indeks similaritas serangga herbivora. Kekayaan spesies,
kelimpahan individu, keanekaragaman, dominansi dianalisis menggunakan aplikasi SPSS
serta uji BNT pada taraf 5%.
Berdasarkan hasil penelitian, ditemukan sebanyak 22 spesies serangga herbivora
yang termasuk ke dalam 4 ordo, yaitu Coleoptera, Hemiptera, Lepidoptera, dan Orthoptera.
Hasil analisis ragam menunjukkan bahwa perbedaan warna bunga tanaman refugia
berpengaruh sangat nyata terhadap kekayaan spesies dan indeks keanekaragaman serangga
herbivora, serta berpengaruh nyata terhadap kelimpahan individu dan indeks dominansi,
tetapi tidak berpengaruh nyata terhadap indeks kemerataan. Di antara seluruh perlakuan,
bunga refugia berwarna kuning (Tagetes erecta) (R1) menunjukkan nilai kekayaan spesies
yaitu 9,83 spesies, kelimpahan individu yaitu 31,16 individu, dan indeks keanekaragaman
yaitu 2,09 yang paling tinggi. Nilai dominansi serangga herbivora pada seluruh perlakuan
tergolong rendah berkisar antara 0,14–0,19, sedangkan nilai indeks similaritas tergolong
tinggi yaitu berkisar antara 78,79–88,24%.
Berdasarkan hasil penelitian dapat disimpulkan bahwa, penggunaan tanaman refugia
dengan warna bunga yang berbeda berpengaruh terhadap keanekaragaman serangga
herbivora pada pertanaman jagung manis. Masing-masing perlakuan memberikan respons
yang berbeda terhadap komunitas serangga herbivora, tetapi perlakuan bunga refugia
Tagetes erecta berwarna kuning memberikan respons terbaik dalam meningkatkan kekayaan
spesies, kelimpahan individu, dan keanekaragaman serangga herbivora.

Sweet corn (Zea mays saccharata Sturt.) is one of the most important agricultural commodities with high economic value. Sweet corn productivity can decline due to the activity of herbivorous insects that cause damage to plant parts. At high population levels, herbivorous insects can become pests on sweet corn plants. One environmentally friendly approach to managing herbivorous insects is the use of refuge plants. Refuge plants have flowers with attractive colors and provide a food source of nectar and pollen, thereby influencing the presence and activity of insects within an agroecosystem. This study aims to determine the effect of differences in the flower color of refuge plants on the herbivorous insect community in sweet corn crops. The study was conducted in Miruek Lamreudep Village, Darussalam Subdistrict, Aceh Besar Regency, and at the Biological Control Laboratory of the Faculty of Agriculture, Syiah Kuala University, from November 2025 to May 2026. This study used a non-factorial completely randomized design (CRD) with four treatments: no refugia (R0), yellow flowers (Tagetes erecta) (R1), red flowers (Zinnia elegans) (R2), and a combination of yellow (Tagetes erecta) and red (Zinnia elegans) (R3). Insect sampling was conducted six times using pitfall traps, sweeping nets, and mechanical methods. The parameters observed included species composition, species richness, individual abundance, diversity, evenness, dominance, and the similarity index of herbivorous insects. Species richness, individual abundance, diversity, and dominance were analyzed using SPSS and the BNT test at the 5% significance level. Based on the research results, a total of 22 species of herbivorous insects were identified, belonging to four orders: Coleoptera, Hemiptera, Lepidoptera, and Orthoptera. The results of the analysis of variance showed that differences in the flower color of refuge plants had a highly significant effect on species richness and the diversity index of herbivorous insects, as well as a significant effect on individual abundance and the dominance index, but no significant effect on the evenness index. Among all treatments, the yellow refuge flower (Tagetes erecta) (R1) exhibited the highest species richness of 9.83 species, individual abundance of 31.16 individuals, and diversity index of 2.09. The dominance values of herbivorous insects across all treatments were relatively low, ranging from 0.14 to 0.19, while the similarity index values were relatively high, ranging from 78.79% to 88.24%. Based on the research results, it can be concluded that the use of refuge plants with different flower colors affects the diversity of in sweet corn fields. Each treatment produced a different response in the herbivorous insect community, but the treatment using yellow Tagetes erecta refuge flowers yielded the best response in increasing species richness, individual abundance, and diversity of herbivorous insects.