The characteristics of tropical peatlands are still able to form a high diversity of plants. Conversion of tropical peatlands affects the composition of plants. The aim of this study was to find out effect of land use changes to the composition and diversity of plants in the Peat Hydrological Unit (PHU) Mendahara - Batanghari River. The research was conducted in three land use categories, namely secondary forest, coffee plantation, and oil palm plantation (subdivided into oil palm plantation 1 and oil palm plantation 2). In each study location, sample lane 20 m x 200 m were made. Overall, we found 77 species of plants. The results showed   number of plant species decreased due to changes of land use. There are 51 - 53 species of plants in secondary forest areas (out of a total of 58 species) that are not found in oil palm and coffee plantations areas. Differences in composition were also shown in the low value of community similarity (<50%). In the oil palm and coffee plantation areas, plant communities tend to be dominated by pioneer plants such as Melicope lunu-ankenda, Coffea liberica, Macaranga triloba, and Melastoma malabathricum. Secondary forest was dominated by plants species that characterize peatlands such as Tetramerista glabra, Parastemon urophyllus, Knema percoriacea, Litsea costalis var. nidularis and Madhuca motleyana. Changes in land use also reduce the level of diversity (H 'and R) at various levels of growth. Whereas in the oil palm and coffee plantation areas tend to form uniform stands (indicated through index E which describes the abundance distribution in community and index C which describes the dominance of species). Generally, the distribution pattern of plants is clumped. Uniform distribution was found in K. percoriacea and L. costalis var. nidularis. Keywords: land use changes, peatland characteristics, plant composition, plant diversity

Forest fires and land conversion to oil palm plantations are one of the major threats that caused dangerous impacts on the existence of peatlands in Indonesia. Rehabilitation by plant type enrichment method is an effort that can be developed to restore the ecological and hydrological functions of degraded peatlands. This study aimed to analyze biophysical conditions (soil characteristics), analyze the growth response of plant species against the combination of planting types; analyze the choice of planting combinations that are in accordance with the physical conditions of the field and the needs of local communities. This study was designed by varying the diversity of tree species or combination of planting. The research plot consists of three size area (5m x 5m, 10m x 10m, and 20m x 20m). The species that used in this study consists of Shorea balangeran, Durio zibethinus, Archidendron pauciflorum, Parkia speciosa, Coffea liberica and Areca pinanga. The results showed that the research plot has soil characteristic from mesotropic fertility categories (moderate fertility) to eutophic (fertile), while the pH between 3.2 -3.5 (very acidic). The growth of plant species at the age of five months has growth rate differentiation both height and diameter in each combination of planting. The height growth of Shorea balangeran species the highest which average of 35.16 cm while the diameter growth of Areca pinanga is 8.13 mm. The best combination of planting is a combination of six species wich consists Shorea balangeran, Durio zibethinus, Archidendron pauciflorum, Parkia speciosa, Coffea liberica and Areca pinanga. ABSTRAKKebakaran dan konversi lahan menjadi perkebunan kelapa sawit merupakan salah satu ancaman utama dan menimbulkan dampak yang sangat serius terhadap keberadaan lahan gambut di Indonesia. Rehabilitasi melalui metode pengayaan jenis tanaman merupakan salah satu upaya yang dapat kembangkan untuk mengembalikan fungsi ekologis dan hidrologis dari lahan gambut terdegradasi. Tujuan penelitian yaitu menganalisis kondisi biofisik berupa karakteristik sifat kimia tanah gambut, menganalisis respon pertumbuhan spesies tanaman terhadap kombinasi jenis penanaman serta menganalisis pilihan kombinasi penanaman yang sesuai dengan kondisi fisik lapangan dan kebutuhan masyarakat setempat. Penelitian dirancang dengan memvariasikan keanekaragaman jenis pohon atau kombinasi penanaman. Plot terdiri atas tiga tipe ukuran yang berbeda yaitu 5 m x 5 m, 10 m x 10 m, dan 20 m x 20 m. Spesies tanaman yang digunakan dalam penelitian adalah Shorea balangeran, Durio zibethinus, Archidendron pauciflorum, Parkia speciosa, Coffea liberica dan Areca pinanga. Hasil penelitian menunjukkan bahwa plot penelitian memiliki karakteristik tanah dengan kategori kesuburan mesotropik (kesuburan sedang) sampai eutrofik (subur), akan tetapi dengan pH antara 3,2 -3,5 (sangat masam). Rata-rata persen hidup tanaman terhadap kombinasi penanaman di seluruh tipe plot adalah >80%. Pertumbuhan jenis tanaman pada umur lima bulan memiliki riap rata-rata pertumbuh...

The Subur farmer group is located in Sugihwaras Village, Maospati District, Magetan Regency, East Java which develops sugarcane (Saccharum officinarum) and teak (Tectona grandis) with a monoculture pattern. Monoculture cultivations produce a single income for farmers, hence other adaptive intolerant commodities and sites that generate alternative income are needed. One of them is Porang (Amorphophallus muelleri Blume). The farmer group’s knowledge and skills related to porang cultivation are very limited. The aims of this activity were: 1) To train farmer groups related to porang cultivation planted with agroforestry patterns; 2) To analyze knowledge changes of farmer groups regarding porang cultivation; and 3) To evaluate the implementation of the training program. The results showed that training on porang cultivation and making agroforestry demonstration plots were able to increase the knowledge of the Subur farmer group. The pre-test score was 65,1 (55%) while the post-test was 88,6 (75%). Based on the evaluation of the assessment of training activities by farmers, as many as 74,3% of farmers stated that they strongly agreed that the porang cultivation training was very useful and suitable for their needs. In addition, the activity feasibility analysis showed that this training is categorized as very feasible to be implemented with a score of 94%. Porang cultivation training for the Subur farmer group was able to increase knowledge and the potential to earn additional income for the people of Sugihwaras Village, Magetan Regency, East Java.