LAPORAN AMALI PERTANIAN

SEMESTER 1 SESI 2016/2017

(ARUS PERDANA)
ASA 0101
INTRODUCTION TO AGRICULTURE
INDUSTRY
KULIAH 2
NAME MATRIC NUMBER
MUHAMMAD HARITH BIN ZAINUDIN AS07300
LUKMAN NURHAKIM BIN MOHD RAMZI AS07278
NUR HAZNI BINTI CHE MOHMAD HASIM AS07283
NURAIN ZULAIKHA BINTI ZULKIFLI AS07336
NUR SYAHIRA BINTI KOMPOL@SAIFUL FAIZAL AS07282
NURUL NASIHAH BINTI AMINUDIN AS07306
 AGRICULTURE ASA0101 PRACTICAL AT THE FARM

Title Page

Agricultural Practice Schedule 3

Introduction 4

Vegetables Unit 5

Dairy Cattle Unit 8

Herbs and Aroma Unit 11

Fertigation Unit 13

Urban Agriculture 15

Composting Unit 17

Deer and Goat Unit 18

Oil Palm Plantation Unit 20

Beverage Unit 22

Fruit Orchard 24

Landscape and Nursery Unit 26

Conclusion 28

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WEEK DATE ACTIVITY/ PLACES

01 26/05/2016 INTRODUCTION AND BRIEFING
02 02/06/2016 VEGETABLE UNIT
03 09/06/2016 DAIRY CATTLE UNIT
04 16/06/2016 HERBS AND AROMA UNIT
05 23/06/2016 FERTIGATION UNIT
06 30/06/2016 EXPO HILL
07 07/07/2016 -
08 14/07/2016 COMPOSTING UNIT
09 21/07/2016 GOAT AND DEER UNIT
10 28/07/2016 OIL PALM UNIT
11 04/08/2016 BEVERAGE UNIT
12 11/08/2016 FRUIT ORCHARD
13 18/08/2016 LANDSCAPE AND NURSERY UNIT
14 25/08/2016 CONCLUSION
AGRICULTURAL PRACTICE SCHEDULE

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INTRODUCTION

Agriculture practical are activities that need to accomplish by student at certain

places by following the time table. From this agriculture practical, student can visit a
a lot of places around Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM) and do a lot of activities that
can increase their knowledge about agriculture and release their stress after
studying. Agriculture practical report need to be done by the student to explain
about what we have done and learn during our agriculture practical.

During the practical, the student do a lot of activities such as feeding the deer,
learning how to differentiate the goat, doing the milking, feed the calf, knowing
about diseases that can attack animals and trees, learn about the ratio for the
fertilizer, transfer the saplings into the polystyrene bag, know about substance in
compose and others. The places that the student visit during the agriculture practical
are Ladang 5, Taman Pertanian Universiti, Fertigation Unit, Vegetables Unit, Herbs
and Aroma units and others.

The benefits that the student can get from the agriculture practical are to get
know and strengthen their relationship with each other. They also can gain and
increase their knowledge about agriculture and interested to take agriculture course
when they doing the degree. They also can apply the knowledge that they gain
during the practical in their daily life.

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1) VEGETABLES UNIT
Week - 2
Date: 02/06/2016

On the 2nd of June 2016, we went to the Vegetable Unit which is located behind
Kolej Pendeta Zaba, Universiti Putra Malaysia. We were given a briefing by the
officer in charge, En. Saidina Hamzah Bin Muhammad. In the briefing, we were
informed about the main activities which are compulsory when it comes to planting
crops.

The first and foremost stage of in planting crops is clearing the land. This
includes making flowerbeds, levelling the soil, removing and properly disposing of
weeds, large rocks in the soil and other debris. The objectives of this stage is to
ensure the work efficiency runs smoothly, to make full use of the cultivation area, to
increase the productivity of the yield, to reduce input cost, to dispose nests of pests
and insects and to beautify the cultivation area.

The second stage is making irrigation and drainages. Irrigation involves providing
water to the plant by using pipes and sprinklers and is a crucial step that some
farmers tend to look past as water is one of the essential needs for crops.
Meanwhile, drainage involves driving away excess water from the cultivation area by
means of drains and channels. This step is important so as not to flood the
flowerbeds which can damage the roots of the crops.

The third step is the planting process. There are various methods of planting,
include planting by seeds, marcotting, stem-cutting and bud-grafting, according to
the type of crop being planted and the resources available at the moment. The
medium for planting is also considered at this stage whether it is in pots, in
flowerbeds, in soil medium or aquaculture and so on.

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Lastly, the final yet most crucial stage of the operation is the maintenance work.
This stage is important as it determines the quality and quantity of the yield.
Activities include weeding which helps to remove competition for nutrients and
water. Also, pruning that can be divided into three importance; to remove dead or
diseased parts of the plant, to shape and maintain the growth of the plant and lastly,
to collect the mature/ripened harvest. Another part of maintenance work is fertilising
and soil tillaging. Fertilising helps the soil to regain its minerals to be absorbed by the
plant and can be done in various forms; organic or chemical and also in liquid or
solid state, which is suited for the crop being planted. Soil tillaging, on the other
hand, is important for soil aeration to ensure that the soil is not too compact for the
root system to develop and to avoid stagnant water from forming on the surface of
the soil.

The activities we did today was clearing the flowerbeds while supervised by En.
Saidina Hamzah Bin Muhammad. Firstly, we were took by the instructor to the
inorganic farming section. My group was also in charge of the organic farming.
There, we were given knives and some rope. We need to cut the rope to many
pieces as we need to be tied up at the top and bottom of the wire. We were told to
tied up the rope to give support for the plant. This may help the plant to get enough
sunlight for the photosynthesis process and also give a systematic growth for the
plant to stand up straight. There were 450 plants that my friends and I needed to be
done for the rope. While tied up the ropes, we noticed that the plants were very
healthy and fresh.

After that, some of my friends went over to the asparagus patch and did some
weeding. There, we noticed that some of the asparagus plants were planted in rows
of flowerbeds while some are planted in individual concrete pots.

As a conclusion, the maintenance stage is a vital stage in the planting process. If

changes were to occur in the surrounding environment of the crops, through some
activities, these errors can be corrected in order to provide a suitable area for
agriculture. Some recommendations that I would like to suggest it to provide gloves

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for the students as many of us have attained small cuts and wounds due to a few
factors.

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2) DAIRY CATTLE UNIT

Week - 3
Date 09/06/2016

When we reached Dairy Cattle unit, we were given information about all we have
to know about dairy cattle farm at Universiti Putra Malaysia. According to Puan
Azlina, Dairy Cattle unit at UPM was open at the year 1975.
Based on him, the production of clean milk is
disease free status of the cow
cleanliness of milking process
rapid cooling of milk to prevent bacterial growth Malaysia-5% self sufficient
He also told us that the world largest exporter of milk and milk products is
New Zealand
Australia
European Union
United States
For us to get grade A milk the bacterial count is <100,000 per ml. This milk is for
direct sales and consumtion in stores. For grade B milk, the bacterial count is not
exceed 300,000 per ml. This milk is for indirect consumption such as cheese making
The composition of milk:-
87%water
4.9%lactose
3.4%fat
3.3%protein
0.7%mineral
AT UPM, there is 42 cows consist of 26 calf and young cow. Cow that is milked is
16 cows (2 times a day at 0800 hours and 1550 hours). The total of milk that they
get is around 6 to 7 litres a day. The milk is sold at RM6.36 for 1.5 litres.
The calf that was just been born will get separated from their mother as it will
get hard to milk the cow when the calf is around their mother. Moreover, the
production of milk will less as the calf will drank the milk from the mother. There is
also tips for us to know what is the differences between dairy cattle and beef cattle.
For dairy cattle,
body wedge shaped
large udder
prominent milk vein
less depth of body at front and rear of the animal
long lean milk

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For beef cattle,

square blocky shaped
udder not prominent
milk vein not prominent
well developed fore and hind quarters
short thick neck
The mode of production is by natural mating where 1 male is for 20 to 25 female.
The way how they want to mating is:-
female on female
the cow will get noise
female produce fluid and it will get swollen
The dairy cattle milk have to born calf once a year so that the production of the
milk will not decrease. There is 3 types of how cow is treated-
intensif - all time in the cage
semi intensive - during daylight the cow came out and grazing, while during
the night the cow in the cage
extensive all time outside of the cage and and grazing
The way they milking the cow is by getting the cow into the holding yard. After that,
they clean the udder and milk the cow using the specialized pump. One cow take
about 5 to 7 minutes to milk. While they are milking the cow, they gave supplement.

Picture shown is the process of

milking the cow in the holding yard

The activity that we do at the dairy cattle unit is we tried to milking the cow and
gave food to the calf. We also had the chance to take a picture with the cow. It is
very interesting as before this we never had an experience how to milk the cow.

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After all things have settle, we go back to our own college with the smell of the cow
but we were very satisfied and happy.

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3) HERB AND AROMA UNIT

Week 4
Date 16/06/2016

On the 16th of June, we were assigned to the Herb and Aroma Unit of the
Agriculture Facility for our weekly practical under one of our subjects, ASA0101:
Introduction to Agriculture. The Herb and Aroma Unit is located 15 minutes away
from the Putra Food Court by foot. We set off for the Herb and Aroma Unit at 1:45
p.m.

Upon arrival, we were greeted and given a brief introduction on the Herb and
Aroma Unit by En. Hamid. The Herb Unit and the Aroma Unit are actually closely
related. This is because the pruning and seeding methods for both these units are
the same. Aromatic plants are usually used in cooking or to stimulate the mind
whereas herbs are used for health purposes. However, the fertilization method in
these units are different. The Aroma Unit uses chemical and organic fertilisers.
However, less chemical fertilisers are used on herbs because herbs are meant for
consumption. Less pesticides are also used on herbs.

Photo 4: Students pruning the jasmine trees to form

hedges along the Vegetable and Aroma Unit.

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ACTIVIES HELD
We were required to prune the jasmine bushes surrounding the Herb and Aroma
Unit to give them a neater appearance and to form a hedge around the units. We
used secateurs and clippers. After that, we weeded around the two units.

INFORMATION GATHERED
We learned about the types of fertilisers used in the Aroma Unit. There are two
types of fertilisers which are organic fertilisers and chemical fertilisers. Chemical
fertilisers come in 4 types: compound fertilisers (NPK Blue 12:12:17, NPK Green
15:15:15), single fertilisers (N, P or K), mixed fertilisers (fertilisers produced based
on the requirements of the soil. Researchers collect soil samples and check for any
lack of N, P or K), and fertilisers for spraying (fertilizer is dissolved in water and
sprayed onto the leaves of the plant instead of the roots). The pros of chemical
fertilisers are that they are easily attainable, affordable and produce results quickly.
However, chemical fertilisers also have their cons. If too much chemical fertilizer is
used, plants may wilt. Long term use of chemical fertilizer also causes soil to become
hard. The pros of organic fertilisers include better quality produce, higher production
of produce, and only small amounts of it are needed; therefore it lasts longer. In
addition, organic fertilizers replenish the fertility of the soil. Herbs are planted
through seeding, sanding and tissue culture

Through this practical, we learnt about the differences between herbs and
aromatic plants. Besides that, we also learnt the importance of herbs and aromatic
plants. We also learnt about types of fertilizers used at each unit.

We hope in the future that the Herb and Aroma Unit will continue to grow and
hopefully be able to host more types of herbs and aromatic plants. We also hope
there will be more activities related to herbs and aromatic plants for students to
during their practical. Overall, it was a great experience and definitely piqued our
interest in herbs and aromatic plants.

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4) FERTIGATION UNIT
WEEK 5
DATE 23/06/2016

At 1400 hours, when we reached the fertigation unit, we were given briefing
about the fertigation unit by Encik Robi Saad.
Fertigation comes from the word Fertilizer & Irrigation. It is the method of
planting the tree with the fertilizer in the form of liquid and it is distributed directed
to the root zone through the irrigation system.
The fertilizer that is in the form of liquid contained
Nitrogen
Fosforus
Kalium
Sulfat
Magnesium
Magan
Ferum
Kuprum
Zink
Boron
Ammonium
Molybdenum
Natrium
All the nutrient must dissolved so that the root can easily take the nutrient efficiently.
The objective of the fertigation is
Avoid from getting soil-borne diseases
Avoid from getting rain water-borne diseases
To increase the effectiveness of the fertilizer absorb by the root
Lessen the operation cost
To get high production of yield
To lessen the use of water
To lessen the labor costs
3 main principle of fertigation-
nutrient dan irrigation
non-soil media
environment-
At Universiti Putra Malaysia they use trellis structure for
supporting the growing of the plant
to increase the number of plant
suitable with the height of the employee

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The flow of irrigation

Nutrient stock nutrient tank pump pipe plant media root
Maintenance that is needed in fertigation unit is
Flushing
Wrapping the tree
Removal of suckers
Pollination
Packaging
The activity that we do at the fertigation unit is we process the lemongrass. First,
we take out the lemongrass from the root. We have to use the hoe as it is very hard
to take it out. About 3 people are needed to take it out. Only the boys do the activity
while the girls will choose which lemongrass is okay or not. After we have finished
the activity, our body is very itchy but we went to the college happily as we finished
the activity before 1630 hours.

The picture shown the girl is picking the

best lemongrass and separated it

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5) URBAN AGRICULTURE
Week - 6
Date : 30/06/2016

On 30 June of 2016, we had go to Expo Hill to complete our practical on

agriculture of our first semester. This time, the practical is about urban agriculture
and how it is been managed from smallholders to big company. Our instructor, Encik
Abdul Ghafar Osman give a brief explanation about urban agriculture field and it is
actually kind of business instead of making the earth greener in modern lifestyle.

Urban agriculture is a practice of cultivating, processing and distributing food in

or around town or city. Urban agriculture can also involve animal husbandry,
aquculture, agroforestry, urban beekeeping, and horticulture. Urban agriculture may
take place in locations inside the cities (intra-urban) or in the peri-urban areas. The
activities may take place on the homestead (on-plot) or on land away from the
residence (off-plot), on private land (owned, leased) or on public land (parks,
conservation areas, along roads, streams and railways), or semi-public land
(schoolyards, grounds of schools and hospitals).

Urban agriculture is done because of lack of soil for agriculture activity in

developing area like city compared to rural areas. Big city was focusing more on
developing activity and urban planning. Most of the area was build a building and
there is not enough space for agriculture activity.

To overcome the problem, several methods were created through some research
on planting variety of plant in urban area. Through this research and architectural
ideas, more plants can be planted even there is not enough flat surface area. Some
of the methods are soiless culture method. It doesnt need soil to plant a tree but of
course need to spent more money on that as it is more convenient and easy.
Besides, we can do kitchen garden method which is do the planting in small pots or
ploybags. Small pots here can be a recycle mineral bottle, any plastic material and
many more depends on peoples creativity. With this kind of method, vertical garden
can be apply easily at the urban area like condominium, apartment and others
building. Vertical garden is applied to overcome the limited source of soil and this
method will maximize the using of soil.

Other than that, aeroponics system also had been applied in urban agriculture
field. Our group had seen the vertical tube on that day. This tube support the flow of
oxygen for rapid growth and a nutrient-rich mist for healthy plant. It will emit a mist

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every 15 minutes but the timer will be shorter as the plant growth to provide more
nutrients.

We are assigned to complete two task during this practical. The first task is
transfer saplings which is 2 weeks old into the polybags. We had to fill up the
polybags with the soil provided until it totally fits. We took out the whole contents of
the small pots that contains saplings onto our palm and separates the soil from
saplings. Then we plants the saplings into the polybags and of course watered it to
keep it moist and keep growth. The instructor told us that the polybags have to
change to prevent the plant from spreading away and water it two times per day.

We also learned a new things on that day which is hydro correls had been used
to replace the soil and only as a medium. Not all plants can grow with this medium.

We got a lot of new information regarding urban agriculture and it is such a wide
field to be explore in urban lifestyle that we were living now.

We were completing the task given

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6) COMPOSTING UNIT
Week - 8
Date - 14/07/ 2016

Once we arrived at the location, we were given lectures from Mrs Haslina
Adnan. She told us briefly about composting unit in UPM. In short, compose is a rich
and crumbly blend of partially decomposed organic material that does wonderful
things for plants. Functioning of using compost are compost improves soil structure,
provides a balanced source of plant nutrients and compost stimulates beneficial
organisms. Compost is consist of 3 elements, that is : dry materials, green materials
and animal waste. All living things need some elements to stay alive. It also the
same for compost. The compost need water, sunlight, nutrient (from the soil and the
animal waste) and brown sugar.

After the lecture session ended, we were divided into three groups. The first
group were given task to spread the agrosheet on the soil, continuing with the
second group which were given task to filter the compost and the last group to
transfer the sawdust into it partition.

The task given were really memorable event because the smell of the sawdust
were really unforgottable and the suddenly rain were pouring heavily. Due to the
rain, we stoped for a while untill the sky clear and then continue again with our
work. After the task were completely done, we were dismissed for the day.

The happy face after the smelly sawdust fully transfer to its partition

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7) DEER AND GOAT UNIT

Week - 9
Date 21/07/2016

On 21 July of 2016, we had rode a bus to deer and goat unit for our practical of
agriculture course. Then we had to walk in to the unit and it took about more than
ten minutes. Upon reach, we were given an explanation about deer and goat in
Universiti Putra Malaysia by a degree students. They seems had a lot af experience
in this field as they are in veterinary studies.

From the explanation, there are 140 deer and 70 goats in Upm. For the deer,
there are three types of them which is Timor, Doma and Samba. Domas type was
from temperate area and only five of 140 in Upm. Sambas type was from Borneo and
it was dark skin.

In general, deer has only 15 years life period. The maximum life period of deer is
11 years. The matured age for deer is 12 and weight about 20 kilograms. When
they had matured, they can start to breed. The way on how to determine their age is
by counting their teeth and half of the total teeth is equal to their age.The female
deer can be recognized by absent of horn but available for male deers. Their horns
was so strong and it need to used Gizni wires to cut it off. Deers travels in groups
called herds. The herds is often led by male deer but sometimes female travel in
their own herds and male in separates herds. They often travel to get food and here,
UPM already provide pellets and paddock for their foods.

In UPM, deers were reared for research and sometimes for agro tourism. Tourists
were given a chance to give pellets to the deer. The important facilities that must
have in reared deers are darkroom for tagging and vaccine. We were brought by the
instructor to the darkroom and it has more doors in there for some reasons to
separate deers. Besides, paddock is a sure in rearing a deer.

As for goats, there are four types of them which is Boer, Katjang, Saanen, and
British Alfine. As i know, Katjang is a native Malaysia. The purpose of rearing goats
just the same as deer which is for research. The period of pregnant for goat is about
5 month and after its born, it took 3 month to be separate with its mom. The
matured age for goat is one years old and weight about 20 kg. The life period for
goat is about ten to fifteen years. The horn of goats sometimes has to be cut off to
prevent the horn harm itself which is the horn shaped inwards and sharp.

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During this practical, we were given a chance to go to the goat pen where goat
was reared. We can see many types of goat and able to differentiate between male
and female goats. Then we go to see the deers in their enclosure and had an
opportunity to give them pellets using our hands. The deers were not aggresive at all
but some seems afraid of us.

From this visits, we learned a lot of new things about goat and deer and having a
lot of fun playing with them.

A herd of deers were resting

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8) OIL PALM PLANTATION UNIT

Week 10
Date 28/07/2016

We went to the Stadium UPM by bus. Then we continue by walking aimlessly into
the oil palm plantation because we do not know where we should be headed.
Suddenly a tractor came and the man who was driving it gave us direction and let us
ride on the back of the tractor. We were very happy riding the tractor as it was the
first time riding it. When we reached the location, we were given lecture from Mr
Abu Hanafiah and then continue by Mr. Zainalabidin Abd Wahid, the one who gave
us a ride.

The lecture begins with the scientific name for Oil Palm that is Elaies Guineensis.
We were shown how to estimate its number of year by calculating the number of the
remained old feather .

Oil palm is in the group of Parennial tree. It bears fruit after 5 years. Back to the
History, Oil palm was planted in Malaysia for the first time in year 1870 by British as
an ornamental plants.Then, in Year 1917, oil palm was industrized when people had
discover the oil that get from the extracted oil palm that we called it Palm Oil. The
arrangements of the UPMs oil palm plantation is 9mX 9mX 9m and the newest one
in 8.8mX 8.8m X8.8m.

Then , we were given task to fertilize the oil palm.We were using the green
colour bag of fertiliser for Oil Palm growth. The fertilizer consist of chemical
substances, organic substances and also zeolite. Zeolite is a large group of minerals
consisting of hydrated aluminosilicates of sodium, potassium, calcium and also
barium which is from the larva of volcanoes. Zeolite will enables better plant growth,
improve the efficency and value of fertiliser and reduces loss of nutrients in soil.
We were taught to do the right fertilizing method. The method are : cannot put the
fertilizer directly to the plant or root because it will make the plant die. One more,
the fertilizer need to be put in the U shape around the bark with for about 2 meter
from its bark.

The oil palm needs a lot of minerals salts to form its leaves and fruits clusters.
When tho oil palm is young, it needs above all nitrogen. When the oil palm has
begun to produce, it needs a lot of potash. Potash increases the number of fruit
clusters, and making them bigger.

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After the task was done, we were sent back to the bus by the tractor again. But,
the great day was ruined when the bus driver scolded us for being late. It was not
our fault, but himself, for arrogantly do not want give his phone number to our
Leader. Luckily, Mr Zainalabidin cover for us by told him not to scold us. He was
really a lifesaviour, indeed a hero. We were really thanking him from the bottom of
our hearts. Then we went back to collage.

Everyone was washing their hands after the fertilizing task was done

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9) BEVERAGE UNIT
Week - 11
Date 04/08/2016

We went to beverage unit on Thursday, 4 August 2016. There, we met Encik

Mohd Zailani bin Abdul Razak. He worked as a supervisor at the beverage unit for 38
years. He once worked at Universiti Putra Malaysia in Bintulu, Sarawak. He gave us
some briefing about beverage plants. In the industrial plantation, there is beverage
plantation. Some of the plants are coffee, tea, cocoa and coconut. There are two
types of coconut which are Kelapa Matak and Kelapa Pandan.

Robusta coffee tree Liberica coffee trees

Arabica coffee tree

For coffee plantation, there are three types of coffee. First, there is Liberica
coffee. Examples of the products are Kopi Kapal Api, Hang Tuah, and Anggerek.
There is also robusta coffee. The planting distance of Robusta coffee is 2.5m2.5m.
An example of robusta coffee is Nescafe. Arabica coffee is being planted at highland.
An example of it is Wonda coffee. Arabica coffee is less caffeine content. Petai is
planted around coffee plants. The height of coffee plants limit is as high as 2 meters.
The planting distance of Liberica coffee is 3m3m. Liberica coffee does not require

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protection and can receive direct sunlight. Coffee producing products once in every 4
years.

The activity that we have done at the Beverage Unit is weeding the petai trees,
Malayan dwarf coconut palm and Arabica coffee. Then, we were told to add NPK
fertiliser which is composed of nitrogen(N), phosphorus(P) and potassium(K). We
dug three holes around the trees. After that, we put around 200g of the NPK
fertiliser for coconut palm and petai trees.

For coffee trees, we need to replace their protectors. Right after that, weeding
and addition of the fertiliser were done. We used hoes to dig the holes. We put
around 100g of the fertiliser in the holes. At last, we cut weeds around the coffee
trees and the coffee field turned beautiful. We were very proud of ourselves and
thanked Encik Zailani Bin Abdul Razak for giving guidance on how to weed the trees
and add the fertiliser around the trees.

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10) FRUIT ORCHARD UNIT

Week 12
Date 11/08/2016

Next, our activity was carried out at Ladang 5,which is fruits unit. The wide area
of the Ladang 5 is 43 hectares. The fruits that were planted at the Ladang 5 were
durian (Durio zibethinus), rambutan (Nephelium Lappaceum L.), pulasan (Nephelium
mutabile), jack fruit (Artocarpus integer), jackfruit (Artocarpus heterophyllus),
mangosteen (Garcinia mangostana), sapodilla (Manilkara zapota), mango (Mangifera
indica) and longan (Dimocarpus longan).

The activity that we should carried out was pruning the rambutan but because of
the bad weather, the agriculture officer, Mr Ahmad Sazli gave us a briefing about
agriculture. The officer stated that to establish an area for agriculture, the area need
to be near the water source, the landform, accessibility so it will be easy to transport
the fruit and irrigation.

The gradient of the landform should be less than 12. If the landform in a good
condition, we can start ploughing and do the clearance using the bulldozer. Next, we
need to check the soils pH. The soils pH should be a 5.5 or 6.0. If the soil is an
acidic, we need to use limestone to neutralize the soil. Before planting the fruit, we
need to do the lining so that the tree will be organized and all the tree will get
enough sunlight. There are three system to plant the tree such as triangle system,
rectangle system and square system.

The agriculture officer, Mr Ahmad Sazli also explained to us about pruning.

Pruning is an activity that involves removing water sprouts and cut twigs or branches
of unwanted, damaged, diseased or cross-shift. The purposes of pruning are to form
a tree with balance leaves, to ensure all parts of the tree to receive enough sunlight
and maximum ventilation and to produce more productive tree. After the briefing, we
got a permission to pluck the rambutan and pulasan.

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From this activity, we gain a lot of knowledge about what we should do before
we start planting the tree and we hope we can learn how to prun so we can apply it
in our daily life.

Picture shown we trying to get the rambutan from the tree

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11 )LANDSCAPE AND NURSERY UNIT

Week 13
Date 18/08/2016

We went to the landscape and nursery unit on 18 August 2016 which is our last
agricultural practice. We met the supervisor, Wan Suhana Binti Wan Talib. There,
we were brought to the ornamental plant nursery unit. This unit is significant for
many things. For instance, this unit is important to produce ornamental plants.
Hence, it is also significant as it is used for many services such as for the university
decorations whether indoor or outdoor places.

Nursery is consequently the basic need of horticulture. Plant propagation

techniques and practices is the core of horticulture nurseries. The planting materials
for horticultural plantations are raised from seeds and vegetative parts. It is also
important for our landscape. They produce many beautiful plants for the university.
The supervisor told us about horticulture which is divided into many groups.
Some of them are floriculture, olericulture, arboriculture, permaculture and turf.
Then, we were stressed on floriculture which is mean flower. We were told that
many flower plants are placed in pots. This is important to help us to carry the pot
anywhere.

We did the activity in groups

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The activity that we have done there is preparing the potting media. What is
required is top soil, organic matter and sand. Provision of the potting media using a
ratio of 3:2:1 where 3 is for top soil, 2 for organic matter and 1 for sand. We used
wheelbarrows and shovels for this activity. We used masks to prevent health effect
due to the dust. Top soil must be filtered before use. After they were mixed, we
learned how to throw the mixture in order to make the mixture more thoroughly.

Right after that, we filtered the mixture. We took 5 ornamental plants and
replaced their media with our new potting media. We were really enjoyed doing the
activity.

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VALUES

After 11 weeks of Agriculture practical in various places in UPM, we learned tons

of knowledge regarding agriculture and even strenghten our bond as Kuliah 2
member. The enthusiasm spirit showed in everyone face everytime doing the
agriculture practical. For us, the agriculture practical is like a PE class where we can
make our body helthier by sweating when completing the task. Moreover, agriculture
practical is really the best class ever and we are sure we will miss the golden
moment.

Moreover, the agriculture practical also make us know UPM better. For example,
the location of Putra Mart, The UPM Golf, UPM stadium and many more. As we all
know, UPM is so huge and wide. On top of that, we are proud of UPM as it is famous
for its scenery spot. For instance, the Cattle Farm. The farm is a very beautiful
place,the trees, the green grass and the its geografy attract many people come to
UPM . Many company came here for shooting. For example, the famous story
Lagenda Budak Setan , Magika and many more.

Then, we get to experience many new things that only have in UPM. For
example, the experience riding the tractor, climbing Rambutan tree, milking the
cattle, eating the Asparagus, doing the potting medium, eating the Belimbing Buluh,
feeding the deer and goat, and many more precious moment.

Lastly, the greatest value that we get is the Syok for Agro. At the beginning when
entering the UPM as an Asasi students, we do not have passion for agriculture. We
only set in our mind that Agriculture is a boring and not famous for further studies
when in degree. But, it all change when we know and experience the agriculture.
Some of our classmates are seriously want to further studies in Agriculture when
degree. In fact, Agriculture is the best subject ever.

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After the last Agriculture practical in Nursery Unit. Kuliah 2

Our team members. Group F

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