Correlation between Weather Conditions with Tenera Oil Palm Yield in Surat Thani Province

Abstract

     Relationship of weather conditions with Tenera oil palm yield in Surat Thani province. The objective of this study was to evaluate the impact of climatic factors on oil palm yield in Surat Thani province. The trail period spanned from 2014 to 2021. Climate parameters were recorded over eight years (2014-2021), while bunch yield data were available for six years (2016-2021). The correlation between these variables was analyzed. The results indicate that the environmental conditions in the study area are suitable for oil palm cultivation, with an average annual rainfall of 1,800.54 mm, 158 rainy days per year, a relative humidity of 83.34%, and an average temperature of 27.29°C. Rainfall, the high over than 200 mm per month was October, November, and December about 248.93, 256.10, and 316.96 mm/year, respectively, while February to April was less 100 mm per month. Oil palm production average six years (2016-2021) results showed that the average fresh fruit bunch (FFB) yield was 261.01 kg/palm/year, the number of bunches (BNO) was 13.87 bunches/palm/year, and the average bunch weight (ABW) was 19.69 kg/bunch. Peak yield occurred in September, reaching 36.19 kg/palm, while the lowest yield of 14.14 kg/palm was observed in February. Additionally, it was found that rainfall and minimum temperatures from two years prior to harvesting moderately influenced oil palm yields. Specifically, rainfall and rainy-day parameters positively impacted the production of fresh fruit bunches. Therefore, it is recommended that oil palm farmers utilize historical data on rainfall parameters to forecast plantation management effectively, ensuring consistent oil palm production despite changing climate conditions.