Basal stem rot (BSR) caused by Ganoderma spp., a basidiomycete fungus, is a major devastating disease of oil palm, especially in Malaysia and Indonesia. Several factors were reported to influence the outbreak of BSR disease which include nutrient status, age of palm, types of soil, previous crop and replanting techniques. Elemental nutrient is known to have some beneficial effects on plant disease control. Over many years, macro- and micronutrient application has been totally overlooked in oil palm fertiliser programmes in relation to outbreak of BSR disease incidence. A study was conducted to determine leaf nutrient concentrations in relation to severity of Ganoderma infection in oil palm seedlings artificially inoculated with G. boninense using root inoculation technique. This study was conducted at Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM), Serdang which involved a total of 210 Dura x Pisifera (DXP) oil palm seedlings. After inoculation, external and internal symptoms developing on seedlings and disease severity index (DSI, four disease classes of 0, 1, 2 and 3) were recorded. At 15 months of inoculation, leaf samples were collected and macro-nutrient such as Nitrogen (N), Phosphorus (P), Potassium (K), Calcium (Ca) and Magnesium (Mg) and micro-nutrient such as Copper (Cu), Zinc (Zn), Manganese (Mn), Iron (Fe) and Boron (B) were analysed. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) was performed to test the difference between leaf nutrient concentrations in relation to DSI, followed by comparison means using Least Significant Difference (LSD) test at 0.05 significant levels. A total of 25.0% of inoculated seedlings were dead due to G. boninense infection. Significant difference of leaf nutrient concentration in relation to DSI was observed. Leaf macro-nutrient concentration of N, K, and Ca showed difference (p&lt,0.05) while P and Mg showed no significant difference in relation to BSR disease development. Meanwhile, leaf micro-nutrient concentration of Cu, Mn and B showed significant difference (p&lt,0.05) while Zn and Fe showed no significant difference. Among significant nutrients, Ca and Cu were found higher in healthy seedlings (DSI – 0) compared to infected seedlings (DSI – 1, 2 or 3). This study suggested that formulation of fertiliser consists mainly of Ca and Cu are needed in order to reduce BSR disease incidence in oil palms.

Reput Pangkal Batang (RPB) disebabkan oleh Ganoderma spp. sejenis kulat basidiomycete, adalah penyakit utama yang teruk pada tanaman kelapa sawit, terutama di Malaysia dan Indonesia. Beberapa faktor telah dilaporkan mempengaruhi penyakit RPB iaitu status nutrien, umur sawit, jenis tanah, tanaman sebelumnya dan teknik penanaman. Element nutrien diketahui mempunyai kesan yang baik terhadap kawalan penyakit tumbuhan. Selepas beberapa tahun pembajaan, aplikasi makro- dan mikro-nutrien diabaikan dalam program pembajaan kelapa sawit berhubung dengan penyebaran penyakit RPB. Satu kajian telah dijalankan untuk menentukan kepekatan nutrient daun berhubung ke atas tahap penyakit RPB pada anak pokok sawit yang diinokulasi dengan G. boninense menggunakan teknik inokulasi akar. Kajian ini dijalankan di Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM), Serdang yang melibatkan sejumlah 210 Dura x Pisifera (DXP) anak pokok sawit. Selepas inokulasi, simptom luaran dan dalaman serta index keterukan penyakit (DSI, 4 kelas 0, 1, 2 dan 3) direkodkan. Selepas 15 bulan inokulasi, sample daun diambil Leaf Nutrient Status in Relation to Severity of Ganoderma Infection in Oil Palm Seedlings Artificially Infected with Ganoderma boninense using Root Inoculation Technique dan makro-nutrien seperti Nitrogen (N), Fosforus (P), Kalium (K), Kalsium (Ca) dan Magnesium (Mg) dan mikro-nutrien seperti Kuprum (Cu), Zink (Zn), Mangan (Mn), Besi (Fe) dan Boron (B) dianalisis. Analisis variance (ANOVA) telah dijalankan untuk menguji perbezaan di antara kepekatan nutrient daun berhubung dengan DSI, diikuti dengan perbandingan bermakna menggunakan ujian perbezaan paling signifikan (LSD) pada 0.05 tahap ketara. Sejumlah 25% anak pokok diinokulasi mati disebabkan oleh G. boninense. Perbezaan di antara kepekatan nutrien daun berhubung dengan DSI diperhatikan. Kepekatan daun makro-nutrien N, K dan Ca menunjukkan perbezaan ketara (p&lt,0.05) manakala P dan Mg menunjukkan tiada perbezaan kepekatan nutrien berhubung dengan penyakit RPB. Untuk kepekatan daun mikro-nutrien Cu, Mn dan B menunjukkan perbezaan ketara (p&lt,0.05) manakala Zn dan Fe menunjukkan tiada perbezaan kepekatan nutrien berhubung dengan penyakit RPB. Di antara nutrien, Ca dan Cu menunjukkan tinggi dalam anak pokok sawit yang sihat (DSI – 0) berbanding dengan anak pokok diinokulasi dengan G. boninense (DSI – 1, 2 atau 3). Kajian ini menujukkan formulasi baja mengandungi Ca dan Cu diperlukan untuk mengurangkan kejadian penyakit RPB pada sawit.