Abstract. Rivai RR, Wardani FF, Devi MG. 2015. Germination and breaking seed dormancy of Alpinia malaccensis. Nusantara Bioscience 7: 67-72. Alpinia malaccensis belongs to the ginger family, Zingiberaceae, and is generally propagated by vegetative organs. Seed propagation is needed in order to improve the quality of plants through crossbreeding. The hard testa and small endosperm are the main problems in seed germination. The objectives of this research were to determine the best media for germination and method for breaking seed dormancy of A. malaccensis. The research was conducted at the Seed Conservation Laboratory, Center for Plant Conservation Bogor Botanic Gardens. A Completely Randomized Design with three replications was used, and the two treatment factors were different germination media and the methods of breaking seed dormancy. Results showed that cocopeat was the best media for increasing A. malaccensis germination rate one month after planting, whereas the method of wounding the testa or soaking the seed in water with a temperature of 75 oC for 5 minutes showed the highest rate of A. malaccensis germination after three months of planting.

Abstract. Latifah D, Wardani FF, Zulkarnaen RN. 2020. Seed germination, seedling survival and storage behavior of Koompassia excelsa (Leguminosae). Nusantara Bioscience 12: 46-49. Koompassia excelsa (Becc.) Taub. (Leguminosae) is an important component of many tropical rainforests as an emergent canopy tree. Knowledge and application of germination strategies and increasing seedling survival of this species in many conservation efforts are essential as it is endemic to several areas in Southeast Asia. This research investigated the effects of the different moisture levels of the sowing media on the germination and seedling survival percentage of K. excelsa. The seeds exhibited faster germination percentage and higher seedling survival when sown in media with 33.2%-moisture. The seeds appeared to have intermediate storage behavior. Thus, sowing seeds in 33.2%-moisture media may promote seedling survival, which is an important part of regeneration as well as conservation of K. excelsa.

Tree health monitoring of risky trees is necessary, especially in areas with a high level of accessibility, such as in hotels and tourist areas. The increased accessibility of hotel visitors and the green space require increased awareness of the risk of falling trees. This research aimed to estimate the amount of internal decay and damage of living trees, with special attention to the large tree in the open space of R Hotel Rancamaya. Tree health monitoring was carried out using two approaches, namely visual observation Sonic Tomography method. The visual parameters were observed following the standard method of the International Society of Arboriculture. A total of 8 trees consists of four types of plants such as Melia azedarach, Durio zibethinus, Falcataria falcata, and Ficus subcordata. The eight trees visually showed no significant damage to their organs. The results of internal trunk inspection by PiCUS-3 Sonic Tomograph also showed a similar result with decay or weathering ranges ranging from 1-3% in healthy trees, except for the stem base of tree 7 (M. azedarach) with weathering of 18%. Handling that needs to be done on six trees at the green area hotel is through light pruning and installing warning signs so that visitors and staff are careful in the tree area. Substantial pruning is recommended specifically for tree 7 because there is significant weathering, and it could be dangerous if the tree is not appropriately handled. The assessment showed that mitigation, warning signs, and physical handling are essential to prevent any unpredicted fallen trees, especially for tree 3 (D. zibethinus) and tree 7 (M. azedarach). Keywords: hotel open space, risky trees, Sonic Tomography, tree health monitoring, visual observation

Bogor Botanic Gardens (BBG) is an ex-situ plant conservation area with thousands of plant collections. The trees of the Lauraceae in BBG experienced the highest number of deaths among other families. However most of them were categorized as young planting years (0-15 years). A tree health monitoring in the Lauraceae needs to be conducted to provide an overview, trend, and value of the level of damage. Forest Health Monitoring (FHM) method was carried out on two plots consisting of 149 trees. FHM can identify the types and levels of damage through monitoring and recording a series of tree damage. The results showed that among 149 trees, with 103 healthy, 9 lightly damaged, 10 moderately damaged, 15 heavily damaged, and 12 dead. The damage was primarily found in the stem (63 trees), the crown branch (51 trees), and the roots (13 trees). The severity of the damage was mainly at a mild level (0-19%). The cause of the damage is discussed. Further observations and frequent monitoring of the health of the Lauraceae need to be conducted by management to reduce the number of dead collections of the family. Keywords: botanic gardens, Forest Health Monitoring, lauraceae, tree health

Abstract. Rivai RR, Wardani FF, Zulkarnaen RN. 2017. The effect of NPK fertilizer and planting media on plant growth and saponin content of the medicinal plant Anchomanes difformis. Nusantara Bioscience 9: 141-145. Anchomanes difformis (Blume) Engl., belongs to the aroid family (Araceae) and has potential as a medicinal plant. A. difformis has not in the past been widely cultivated by farmers in Indonesia, so if it is to be grown as a crop for medicinally active compounds, we must first find how best to cultivate it. The objective of the research described here was to determine an effective planting media and optimum dosage of a standard NPK fertilizer for A. difformis plant growth in pots, and saponin content of its rhizomes. The research was conducted at the Treub Laboratory and Garden Nursery, Center for Plant Conservation Botanic Gardens, Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI). A completely randomized design with three replications was used to test a factorial arrangement of two treatment factors, namely: planting media of three types; and dosage of a standard NPK fertilizer (15% N, 15% P 2 O 5 , 15% K 2 O) at four levels. Results showed that for plant growth of Anchomanes difformis, a mixed medium of soil/cocopeat (1:1) was the best of the three media evaluated, and the application of the NPK fertilizer at a dosage equivalent to 100 kg/ha was the optimum fertilizer level. There was no statistical interaction between the treatment factors. The rhizomes of A. difformis had their highest level of saponin content when planted in the mixed soil/cocopeat (1:1) medium, and with NPK fertilizers at a dose level of 100 kg/ha.