Tanaman refugia mempunyai potensi menyokong mekanisme sistem yang meliputi perbaikan ketersediaan makanan alternatif seperti nektar, serbuk sari, dan embun madu; menyediakan tempat berlindung atau iklim mikro yang digunakan serangga predator untuk bertahan melalui pergantian musim atau berlindung dari faktor-faktor ekstremitas lingkungan atau pestisida; dan menyediakan habitat untuk inang atau mangsa alternative. Pengamatan dilakukan di lahan teaching farm, Buludua bertujuan untuk mengidentifikasi jenis-jenis gulma yang berpotensi sebagai tanaman refugia dan mengidentifikasi jenis-jenis serangga yang datang atau hinggap ke gulma refugia. Pengamatan dilakukan dengan metode observasi langsung dan penangkapan serangga dilakukan dengan menggunakan jaring ayun selanjutnya diidentifikasi dilaboratorium. Hasil pengamatan menunjukkan terdapat 4 jenis gulma dan serangga yang ditemukan di kebun pertanaman Buludua, , yaitu Cynedrella nodiflora, Centella asiatica, Ageratum conyozides,, dan Borreria laevis.  Terdapat 4 ordo serangga yaitu odonata, hymenoptera, lepidoptera dan  coleoptera. Terdapat  4 species serangga  yaitu Orthetrum sabina, Troides helena, Monomorium sp.dan kumbang Coccinella sp. yang berperan sebagai serangga berguna. Terdapat 1 ordo serangga yaitu ordo orthoptera dan 2 species serangga yang berfungsi sebagai  serangga herbivora yaitu Oxya servile dan  Valanga nigricornis..

The exploration of arbuscular mycorrhiza fungi from sugarcane plantation in marginal land in South Sulawesi was carried out to find the source of inoculums showing effective infection. Soil samples were taken from four area with different characteristic of marginal land, namely land with low organic matter content, clay texture, limited irrigation, and undulating land. Mycorrhizae contained in the soil samples were then observed, and the spores obtained were used as the source of isolation by a single spore culture. The mycorrhizal spores were isolated by wet sieving and centrifugation method with 48% sucrose, which were observed under a compound microscope for spore details (100-1000x). Sugarcane root samples were taken to observe mycorrhizal infection in sugarcane root tissue by root staining method. The results of the study showed that the greatest diversity of mycorrhizal genera was found in soil samples of Jambua Block (Glomus, Gigaspora, and Sclerocistis) and AJ-5 Block area (Glomus, Acaulospora, and Sclerocistis). Single-spore isolates obtained were Glomus sp. and Acaulospora sp. Infection test result on four sugarcane varieties commonly grown in Takalar Sugar Factory showed that infectivity of mycorrhizal isolate of Acaulospora sp. was the highest (75%) and significantly different (LSD’test, p 0,05) compared to that of Glomus sp. (66%).

This study aims to determine the effect of different priming methods on the viability and early growth of upland rice under drought stress.  Priming is an important approach to improve the resistance of upland rice plants to drought stress from the germination phase to growth, especially on sub-optimal land. There are several efficient priming methods as seed pretreatment to increase germination and tolerance to drought stress. An effective priming method is needed to increase the germination and growth of upland rice seedlings for application in dryland agriculture. Therefore, an experiment was conducted at the Seed laboratory of Pangkep State Polytechnic of Agriculture, Indonesia, from September to October of 2022 to investigate the effect of several priming methods on the germination and growth of upland rice seedlings under drought stress. The experiment consisted of 2 stages, germination testing and seedling growth phase testing with the addition of water stress treatment. Experiment 1 was conducted in a completely randomized design (CRD) with four replications, including Control (no priming), Osmopriming with 15% and 20% PEG solution, Redox Priming with 3% and 6% H2O2 solution, and Organic Priming using 50% and 75% Moringa leaf extract. Experiment 2 was conducted using a two-factor of factorial in Randomized Block design (RBD) with three replications. The first factor is the Seedling results of stage 1 experiments (selected the best of each priming method) includes 4 treatments each Control treatment, Osmopriming with 15% PEG solution, Redox Priming with 3% H2O2 solution, and Organic Priming with 50% Moringa Leaf Extract.  The second factor is the level of Drought Stress conducted by 100%, 60%, and 30% of Field Capacity. The results showed that the priming method with Osmopriming 15% PEG solution gave the best results on Seed germination percentage (87.5%) followed by Organic priming with 50% Moringa Leaf Extract (SGP 85%). Under drought stress conditions with 30% field capacity, the highest increase in proline levels was observed with H2O2 redox priming 3%  (10.3 µ-mol. g-1 ), while the average root growth of all primed seedlings showed better root growth than seeds without priming treatment. Seed priming gives better results on the growth and physiological activities of upland rice at several levels of drought stress, in the early growth phase of seedlings

Teknik refugia merupakan salah satu teknik pengendalian organisme pengganggu tanaman (OPT) dengan memanfaatkan tanaman hias yang ditanam di pinggiran sawah atau pertanaman untuk menarik serangga predator dan parasitoid. Manfaat refugia sebagai area konservasi musuh alami di sawah yaitu sebagai tanaman perangkap hama, tanaman penolak hama, tempat berlindung, menarik musuh alami untuk hidup dan berkembangbiak di area tersebut karena menyediakan sumber nutrisi dan energi seperti nektar, serbuk madu dan embun madu yang dibutuhkan oleh musuh alami sehingga kehadiran musuh alami dapat menyeimbangkan populasi hama pada batas yang tidak merugikan. Kegiatan pengabdian pada masyarakat ini dilaksanakan pada bulan April-November 2021 di Desa Pitusunggu, Kecamatan Ma’rang, Kabupaten Pangkep. Kegiatan ini bertujuan untuk memperkenalkan teknik refugia kepada kelompok tani Pita Aksi yang mengusahakan pertanian secara organik, sebagai salah satu teknik pengendalian hama tanaman yang ramah lingkungan.  Pelaksanaan kegiatan ini terdiri atas sosialisasi dan penyuluhan tentang teknik refugia serta demonstrasi plot penanaman tanaman refugia di lahan pertanaman. Setelah mengikuti kegiatan sosialisasi, penyuluhan dan demonstrasi plot masyarakat tani jadi paham bahwa tanaman yang bunganya cerah dapat berfungsi sebagai refugia dan penanaman tanaman refugia sebaiknya ditanam sebelum tanaman utama agar dapat dimanfaatkan sebagai tempat berlindung dan berkembangnya musuh alami dan serangga penyerbuk.