PERFORMA RUMPUT LAUT Kappaphycus alvarezii HASIL SELEKSI DI PERAIRAN LAIKANG KABUPATEN TAKALAR

Peremajaan bibit melalui seleksi dapat dilakukan untuk perbaikan kualitas bibit rumput laut. Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk menentukan performa bibit rumput laut K. alvarezii hasil seleksi varietas Takalar, SIRICA, dan Bali. Desain penelitian adalah rancangan acak lengkap (RAL), dengan empat siklus pemeliharaan sebagai ulangan. Seleksi bibit dilakukan pada ketiga varietas dengan bibit non-seleksi sebagai kontrol internal. Pemeliharaan dilakukan di perairan Laikang, Takalar, Sulawesi Selatan selama empat siklus dengan durasi 30 hari/siklus. Pengukuran laju pertumbuhan harian (LPH), kandungan karagenan, kekuatan gel, dan monitoring kualitas air dilakukan setiap 30 hari. Data yang diperoleh dianalisis menggunakan analisis ragam (ANOVA). Hasil penelitian menunjukkan bahwa seleksi bibit berpengaruh signifikan terhadap LPH rumput laut (P<0,05). Rumput laut hasil seleksi memiliki LPH lebih tinggi, yakni: Bali (4,75 ± 0,04%/hari), SIRICA (4,74 ± 0,06%/hari), dan Takalar (4,62 ± 0,12%/hari) dibandingkan dengan kontrol internal Bali (3,94 ± 0,15%/hari), SIRICA (3,74 ± 0,10%/hari), dan Takalar (3,66 ± 0,32%/hari). Rumput laut hasil seleksi varietas Bali dan SIRICA memiliki kandungan karagenan yang relatif sama yakni (37,27 ± 6,68%) dan (37,08 ± 7,17%). Varietas Takalar memiliki kandungan karagenan yang rendah (31,84 ± 5,32%) namun memiliki kekuatan gel yang paling tinggi (570,03 ± 145,72 g/cm²) dibandingkan varietas Bali (444,39 ± 157,44 g/cm²) dan SIRICA (438,48 ± 72,70 g/cm²).Regeneration by selection method can improve the quality of seaweed seed. This study was aimed to determine the performance of selected seaweed seeds of K. alvarezii from Takalar, SIRICA, and Bali varieties. The experiments were arranged in a completely randomized design with four cycles cultivations as replications. In each variety, a batch of non-selected/regular seeds was cultivated serving as internal control. The seaweed was cultivated in Laikang waters, Takalar Regency, South Sulawesi for 30 days for each cycle. The measurements of daily growth rate (DGR), carrageenan yield, gel strength, and water quality were conducted every 30 days. The collected data were statistically analyzed using ANOVA. The results showed that the selected seeds showed faster growth than that of its respective control (P<0.05). The selected seed of three varieties of K. alvarezii had higher DGR: Bali (4.75 ± 0.04%/day), SIRICA (4.74 ± 0.06%/day), and Takalar (4.62 ± 0.12%/day) than that of control varieties, Bali (3.94 ± 0.15%/day), SIRICA (3.74 ± 0.10%/day), and Takalar (3.66 ± 0.32%/day). The selected seeds of Bali and SIRICA had similar carrageenan content (37.27 ± 6.68%) and (37.08 ± 7.17%), respectively. Takalar had the lowest carrageenan yield (31.84 ± 5.32) but had the highest gel strength (570.03 ± 145.72 g/cm²) compared to Bali (444.39 ± 157.44 g/cm²) and SIRICA (438.48 ± 72.70 g/cm²).