Analysis of Growth and Yield of Grain Maize (Zeamays L.) Through the Application of Biosaka Elicitors Derived From Various Weed Species on Dystrudept Soil

Corn (Zea mays L.) is one of Indonesia’s strategic food commodities after rice, serving as a food source, animal feed, and industrial raw material. This study tested various types of botanical elicitors on the productivity of grain corn plants grown on Dystrudept soil. The method used was a factorial randomized block design (RBD) with three factors: weed type (G0 = No Weeds, G1 = Babadotan (Ageratum conyzoides), G2 = Pakisan (Diplazium esculentum), and G3 = Mixed Weeds (Babadotan + Pakisan)), Application Frequency (I1 = Weekly, I2 = Every 2 Weeks, and I3 = Every 3 Weeks), and Biosaka Concentration (D1 = 20 ml/16 L water, D2 = 40 ml/16 L water, and D3 = 60 ml/16 L water). The results showed that the application of the Pakisan weed-based elicitor (G2) significantly produced the highest yield, namely 1.54 kg/plot and 3.85 tons/ha. The application of the elicitor at a concentration of 60 ml per 16 L of water clearly produced the best response in terms of vegetative growth, particularly as measured by the number of leaves (10.15 leaves) and leaf area (641.70 cm²).