THE ROLE OF FARMING GROUP IN THE IMPLEMENTATION OF SAPTA BUSINESS IN PADDY RICE FARMING IN LADONGI SUB-DISTRICT LADONGI DISTRICT KOLAKA EAST DISTRICT

Role of Farming Group in The Implementation Of


INTRODUCTION
The need for food is the most important basic human need, therefore its fulfillment is part of the human rights of every human being.In Indonesia, the fulfillment of adequate food for all people is a necessity, both morally, socially, and legally, including the basic rights of every Indonesian people.Amid the density and increasing human population, the need for food has also increased.An increase in food in an area must be based on an increase in the agricultural sector because agriculture is the initial foundation for progress and the sufficiency of people's food.One of the food-producing plants is rice.Rice is one of the main food commodities for the Indonesian people because processed products in the form of rice are a staple food for most Indonesian people (Lestari et al., 2018).
The agricultural sector in Indonesia is considered important because it can provide food, provide jobs, and contribute to foreign exchange through exports.Indonesia has a lot of natural wealth consisting of land resources, water resources, forest resources, and marine resources, as well as the biodiversity contained therein and widely spread in every region in Indonesia.This natural wealth can be used as capital for development in Indonesia, one of which is through the agricultural sector (Widyawati, 2017).
Agriculture has an important meaning for the development of the Indonesian nation's economy.The government has set agriculture as a top development priority in the future.Agricultural development that is managed wisely and well will increase growth and at the same time sustain economic equity, and overcome unemployment and poverty, which will ultimately be able to prosper the Indonesian people as a whole (Fadlina et al., 2013).The development of agriculture cannot be separated from the role of the government and farmers who have contributed a lot to the agricultural sector and one of the ways to maximize agricultural improvement, especially in lowland rice commodities, is the application of Sapta Farming Technology.
Sapta farming is seven actions that must be done by farmers to generate maximum income.The seven seven farming actions include soil preparation, use of superior seeds, fertilization, pest and disease control, irrigation, harvest, and post-harvest.With the Sapta Usaha Farming program, it is hoped that farmers will know more about good cultivation methods so that maximum production can be obtained and can increase farmers' income.The problems that are often encountered in carrying out seven farming activities are limited capital, production inputs, climatic conditions, and knowledge in carrying out seven farming activities.This situation will affect the level of agricultural productivity (Fahmi & Balkis, 2017).
Agricultural development will not work as the Indonesian nation aspires to because of the various problems it faces from time to time.The problem is that the knowledge and ability of the community are still low, so the role of the government is needed, in this case, the formation of farmer groups.It is through these farmer groups that the farming community will be empowered so that agricultural productivity can increase.Farming development through farmer groups is none other than an effort to accelerate the adoption of innovations by farmers.The existence of farmer groups is expected to be able to bring about big changes for farmers to be able to overcome the problems and limitations of farmers in implementing Sapta Farming to become more effective and efficient so that the agricultural sector can provide welfare to farmers.
Kolaka East Regency is one of the areas that has great agricultural potential in this case the commodity of paddy rice.Kolaka East Regency is also one of the rice production areas in Sulawesi Tenggara after Konawe, Konawe Selatan, Kolaka, and Bombana Regencies.In 2015, rice production in Kolaka East reached 77,289 tonnes.Then in 2020, the production of lowland rice in Kolaka East Regency increased production, namely 89,392.70tons, with a harvested area of 19,971.49 Ha (Badan Pusat Statistik Kolaka Timur, 2022).The increase in lowland rice production in Kolaka East Regency cannot be separated from the role of agricultural extension workers through farmer groups in implementing Sapta Farming.Several districts in Kolaka East Regency are rice production centers, such as Ladongi District which is a rice-producing area and has many grain milling factories.
Rice plants are a favorite for the people of East Kolaka, especially in the Ladongi area because the commodity of paddy rice is more stable in the market compared to other agricultural commodities which often experience a drastic decline so that Ladongi District, which was formerly known as a cocoa barn, has turned into a rice barn.It is proven that in 2019 the production of paddy fields in Ladongi reached 27,311.7 To with a harvested area of 5,811 Ha and the percentage of paddy fields reaching 26% of the total area of land use (Badan Pusat Statistik Kolaka Timur, 2019).
The development of lowland rice in Ladongi District cannot be separated from the government's seriousness in turning East Kolaka into a rice barn.In 2017 the government printed new rice fields, amounting to 700 Ha, the source of which is from the APBN and Provincial Work Units.The large number of new paddy fields created in Ladongi District was also based on the decline in cocoa productivity so far, besides that it was also caused by pests and diseases in cocoa commodities.Most of the cocoa farmers switched their functions to become lowland rice farmers, by converting cocoa farms into lowland rice fields through the creation of new rice fields.
The construction of a dam in the Ladongi Sub-District has also become one of the factors causing many cocoa farmers to convert their land into rice fields.Through the Ministry of PUPR and the Sulawesi River Basin Office (BWSS) IV Kendari and the Directorate General of Water Resources have started the construction of the dam in Ladongi District since 2016 with the work period until the end of 2021.The construction of this dam is aimed at maximizing the potential of the river flow in Ladongi as a water resource in Kolaka East Regency.The Ladongi Dam can hold back the flow of the Ladongi River with a holding capacity of 45.95 million m3, an inundation area, and a green forest area of 246.13 Ha.The stored water can be used to irrigate paddy fields with 3,604 hectares of drainage services in a sustainable manner in the East Kolaka Regency.

RESEARCH METHODS
The research was carried out from February to May 2022.The research location was in Ladongi Village, Ladongi District, Kolaka East Regency because this area was part of the farmer groups that had started to apply Sapta Farming to paddy rice plants.The population in the study was 32 lowland rice farmer groups which had a total number of group members of 779 families and the farmer groups were divided into two classes, namely beginner farmer groups and advanced farmer groups.Determination of the sample in this study using a technique (proportional random sampling) using the Slovin formula.In this study, it was found that the total population was 779 people and used an error limit of 15% (Sugiyono, 2016).The Slovin formula is as follows.Based on the results using the Slovin formula, the calculation results are 42.04, then rounded up to 42 respondents.Meanwhile, to determine the sample size for each class, namely beginners and advanced, this study used the Proportional Random Sampling technique.Proportional Random Sampling is a technique for taking samples from a population that is carried out randomly without regard to the strata in that population (Janatin, 2015).The Proportional Random Sampling formula is as follows.Based on the results of using the formula above, the number of samples that can represent each class in the farmer group is obtained as shown in Table 1.The data that has been obtained is then analyzed using the scoring or scoring method, based on the questions that have been prepared in the questionnaire whose indicators come from the Impact Point.All lists of questions will be given a score that has been determined in the study.If to find out the number of class intervals needed in the study, then the level of the role of farmer groups in implementing Sapta rice farming in Ladongi Village is divided into three categories, namely high, medium, and low.Meanwhile, in determining class intervals, the following formula can be used.

C = 𝑋𝑛 − 𝑋𝑖 𝑘
Explanation: The results of calculations using the formula above are used in making a list of the level of the role of farmer groups on the level of application of the Sapta Farming in lowland rice farming (high, medium, and low), presented in the following table.

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
The Role of Farmer Groups The role of farmer groups in the agricultural sector is to become a vessel that accommodates farmers in carrying out cooperation between members (farmers) who have a very important role in people's lives, especially farmers because all activities and problems encountered in farming can be carried out by farmer groups together (Fitrullah, 2013).With the existence of farmer groups in Ladongi Village, farmers or group members work together to solve problems they face, such as fulfilling agricultural facilities and infrastructure, production procedures, and marketing results.Seeing the magnitude of this potential, farmer groups must be fostered and further empowered so that they can develop better.The scoring value at the level of the role of paddy rice farmer groups in Ladongi Village consists of learning classes, cooperative vehicles, and production units.Table 4 shows that the role of farmer groups has a high category of 36 respondents (85.71%) and as many as 6 respondents (14.29%) are in the medium category.It can be concluded that the role of farmer groups has been going well.Based on research by farmer groups in Ladongi Village, most of them have implemented indicators of the role of farmer groups, namely as a learning class, a vehicle for cooperation, and a production unit.This is in line with the research of Effendy & Apriani (2018) that farmer groups are a place for teaching and learning for group members to increase knowledge, skills, and attitudes, grow and develop independence in farmer farming so that the productivity of agricultural products increases.

Study Class
The role of farmer groups as a learning class has a high category of as many as 39 respondents (92.86%).Based on the situation in the field, the role of farmer groups as a learning class is evidenced by group members sharing information and experiences about farming and the discipline of group members to attend in determining learning and training materials to carry out extension activities to farmers.It can be concluded that the role of farmer groups as a learning class has increased farmers' knowledge and insight so that it will have a positive impact on the application of sapta farming in Ladongi Village.Irawati & Yantu (2015) said that with the existence of farmer groups, group members can interact with each other and share experiences or solve problems about farming together.

Cooperation Forum
The role of farmer groups as a vehicle for cooperation has a high category, namely 37 respondents (88.10%).Based on the situation in the field, farmers who are members of the Mekar Baru farmer group cooperate with harvest processors or rice millers in Ladongi Village in conducting harvesting services and access to sell rice harvests to millers.It can be concluded that the role of paddy rice farmer groups in Ladongi Village as a vehicle for cooperation has increased the sense of togetherness of fellow farmers in working on farming activities.This is in line with the research of Pratama et al (2016) which states that farmer groups can act as a vehicle for cooperation among fellow farmers in carrying out farming activities.

Production Units
As a production unit, farmer groups are given direction to have the ability to make decisions to determine product development that can be profitable.The role of farmer groups as a production unit in Ladongi Village has a high category of as many as 23 respondents (54.76%).Based on the situation in the field, the paddy rice farmer group in Ladongi Village also assists with two-wheeled tractor equipment to make it easier for farmers to plow rice fields and provide assistance with superior seeds, fertilizers, and pesticides.This is as done by the Mekar Baru Farmer Group, Syukur, Ranting Tani, Maju Bersama, and Samaturu based on interviews with the heads of farmer groups that fertilizer, seed, and pesticide assistance is always given at the beginning of the season.This is in line with the research of Pramono & Yuliawati (2020) that the role of farmer groups as a production unit is to provide facilities and infrastructure to support group members' farming.It can be concluded that the role of farmer groups as a production unit in Ladongi Village has had a positive impact in helping and facilitating farmers to carry out sapta farming activities.This is also in line with the research of Mantali et al (2021) that the production unit on farmers' farms is an activity that can be carried out by farmer groups in carrying out their role as a production unit.

Implementation of Sapta Rice Farming
The Sapta farming program is a program originating from the Agricultural Research and Development Agency that unites five farming with harvest and post-harvest so that in 1984 Indonesia achieved the target of rice self-sufficiency.Indicators of the application of Sapta farming can be seen in the level of use superior seeds, land cultivation, fertilization, pest and plant disease control, irrigation, harvest, and post-harvest.Table 5 shows that the application of sapta farming has a high category, namely 41 respondents (97.62%) and as many as 1 respondents (2.38%) in the medium category.It can be concluded that the seven activities included in Sapta Farming in Ladongi Village have been running well.The successful implementation of Sapta Farming is inseparable from the role of all parties who help especially coupled with the activeness of extension workers in providing agricultural innovations.This is in line with the research of Purnawati et al (2015) that the increase in the agricultural sector is the result of the use of new techniques or new methods in farming such as the seven actions in the application of Sapta farming.

Superior Seeds
The application of sapta farming in the use of superior seeds has a high category, namely 42 respondents (100%).This can be proven that farmer group members before planting first choose the type of seeds to be planted such as new seeds that are still in circulation or have not expired and certified.Farmers have used superior seed types such as Inpari 30, Ciherang, and Mekongga variates that have been certified by UPTD/IP2MB/BBP2TP.It can be concluded that the impact of the role of farmer groups that always provide seed assistance so that the application of sapta farming on superior seeds is categorized as high.This is in line with the opinion of Mayalibit et al (2018) that the use of superior and quality seeds can increase productivity.Seeds of superior varieties can also be obtained from seeds that have been certified.The advantages of superior and certified rice seeds include guaranteed seed quality, seed uniformity (flowering, growth, and fruit ripening), plants will be resistant to pests and diseases, and yields from seeds with guaranteed quality.

Land Cultivation
Land processing is an effort to increase and improve the physical properties of the soil by carrying out tillage such as loosening and plowing.The application of sapta usahatani in land processing is in the high category, namely as many as 23 respondents (54.76%).The situation in the field is evidenced that farmers who are members of the paddy rice farmer group in Ladongi Village have plowed and threshed the land using modern tools such as two-wheeled tractors that can make it easier to plow rice fields.When compared to plowing rice fields manually using hoes and animal power, it will take longer to complete the plowing of rice fields.The positive impact of the role of farmer groups in land cultivation is also evident from the assistance of providing chemical and organic fertilizers such as manure and compost routinely at the beginning of the season so that farmer group members routinely sprinkle organic fertilizers on their rice fields.This is in line with Soekamto & Fahrizal (2019) that improving and increasing soil fertility can be done through land cultivation by adding organic matter to the soil.It can be concluded that the role of farmer groups has had a positive impact on tillage.

Fertilization
Fertilization is an effort to provide nutrients to plants to support their survival.the application of sapta farming in fertilization has a high category, namely 40 respondents (95.24%).Field facts are evidenced by farmer group members who have fertilized according to existing recommendations and doses.This is inseparable from the activities of farmer groups through the media counseling which is routinely attended by group members to increase the knowledge of farmers.The doses recommended to farmers are NPK Mutiara, NPK Pelangi, NPK Green Sand, Urea 150 kg, KCL 75 kg per ha, and SP-36 100 kg.This is in line with the opinion of Dewanto et al (2017) that fertilization aims to replace nutrients that have been lost and also increase the supply of nutrients needed by plants and plant quality.It can be concluded that the role of farmer groups as a place of learning makes farmers more aware of good and correct fertilization.In addition, Krisnawati & Adirianto (2019) added that fertilizer application must pay attention to the dose needed by plants so as not to disturb the growth of plants.

Pest and Plant Disease Control
The application of sapta farming in pest and disease control has a high category of 36 respondents (85.71%).This can be seen in the way farmers deal with pests and diseases, namely first; farmers use rice variates that are resistant to pest attacks, second; breaking the food chain of pests and diseases by planting simultaneously at the beginning of the rice season and simultaneously doing the planting break season, third; using chemical pesticides so that it is faster in eradicating pests and plant diseases.This is in line with Rahim et al (2017) controlling pests and diseases of wetland rice crops by using resistant varieties, biological control, biopesticides, physical and mechanical, pheromones, and maintaining populations of natural enemies.It can be concluded that the impact of the role of farmer groups that provide superior and resistant seed assistance and pesticide assistance makes it easier for members of the paddy rice farmer group in Ladongi Village.

Irrigation
The application of sapta farming by farmers in irrigation has a high category of 30 respondents (71.43%).It is proven by the field facts that the members of the farmer group together carry out irrigation maintenance, irrigation work, and water distribution on their respective fields.This is done so that among farmers there is no dispute in irrigating their respective fields and irrigation channels can be maintained and function properly.This is reinforced by the opinion of Murdiana & Fadli (2016) that irrigation is the most important factor in running a paddy rice farm because without sufficient irrigation rice plants will not grow well.

Harvest
At the harvest stage, the application of sapta usahatani has a high category, namely 39 respondents (92.86%).This is evidenced by farmers who harvest according to the age of ripe rice which is 100-110 days marked by the color of yellowing and dry rice.Farmers also use the help of modern tools sourced from harvesting/milling service providers and assistance from the local government.This is to facilitate the process of cutting and threshing rice so that the grain produced can be quickly ready for sale.The tool used by members of the paddy rice farmer group in Ladongi Village is the Combine Harvester with the advantages of cutting, threshing, and cleaning at once.This agrees with Maslaita et al (2017) that harvesting is carried out with the criteria of grain that has reached 95% yellowing, and the leaves are yellow and dry.This condition is estimated when the plant is between 100-110 days old.It can be concluded that the positive impact of the role of farmer groups in the implementation of sapta farming is to assist farmers in providing access to modern harvesting equipment.

Post-Harvest
In post-harvest activities, the application of sapta farming is in the high category, with as many as 23 respondents (54.76%).It is proven by the fact that farmer groups cooperate with other parties starting from threshing rice into grain to providing markets to sell products.This is in line with the opinion of Iswari (2012) that post-harvest activities such as improving quality, storability, the usability of agricultural commodities, expanding employment opportunities, and can increase added value.

CONCLUSION
The role of paddy rice farmer groups in Ladongi Village has a good role as a learning class, a vehicle for cooperation, and a production unit.Then the application of sapta farming in Ladongi Village is included in the high category or has been done well.This can be seen from the high implementation of the seven sapta usahatani indicators, namely superior seeds, land management, fertilization, pest and disease control, irrigation, harvesting, and post-harvest which have shown high implementation.

Table 1 .
Determining the Number of Research Samples

Table 2 .
Level of Role of Farmer GroupsNo.

Table 4 .
Scoring the Role of Farmer Groups

Table 5 .
Scoring of Sapta Farming Implementation