Combination effects of NPK fertilizer and benzyl amino purine (BAP) in accelerating Cattleya Orchid vegetative growth

Vegetative growth of Cattleya orchids is influenced by environmental factors. In addition, growth and development are also determined by the availability of nutrients and hormones. One of the methods to accelerate the vegetative growth of orchids is by the application of NPK fertilizers and plant growth regulators such as benzyl amino purine (BAP). The objective of this study was to obtain the best concentration of NPK and BAP concentration on the vegetative growth of Cattleya orchids. The experiment was conducted at the screenhouse of the Experimental Garden of Bale Tatanen, Faculty of Agriculture, Padjadjaran University with a Factorial Randomized Block Design consisting of two factors, namely the concentration of NPK fertilizer (0, 1, 2, 3, and 4 g L-1 of NPK-28:10:10 and 2 g L-1 of NPK-32:10:10 as positive control), and the second factor was BAP concentration (0, 0.5 and 1 mg L-1) with three replications. The results showed that there was an interaction effect between the application of 2 g L-1 of NPK 28:10:10 and 1 mg L-1 BAP on the number of pseudobulbs per clump. Independently, the treatment of 2 g L-1 of NPK 28:10:10 showed the best results in the increase of plant height and the number of new shoots. While 0.5 mg L-1 of BAP showed the best results in the increase of plant height, the number of new shoots and the SPAD value.