PROS SEM NAS MASY BIODIV INDON Volume 2, Nomor 2, Desember 2016 ISSN: 2407-8050 Halaman: 219-225 DOI: 10.13057/psnmbi/m020217 Ex situ conservation of Amorphophallus titanum in Bogor Botanic Gardens, Indonesia Konservasi ex situ Amorphophallus titanum di Kebun Raya Bogor, Indonesia DWI MURTI PUSPITANINGTYAS ♥ , SITI ROOSITA ARIATI Centre for Plant Conservation Botanic Gardens (Bogor Botanic Gardens), Indonesian Institute of Sciences. Jl. Ir. H. Juanda No. 13 Bogor 16122, Jawa Barat. Tel./Fax. 0251-8322-187, ♥ email: puspitakrb@yahoo.com Manuscript received: 3 November 2016. Revision accepted: 17 December 2016. Abstract. Puspitaningtyas DM, Ariati SR. 2016. Ex situ conservation of Amorphophallus titanum in Bogor Botanic Gardens, Indonesia. Pros Sem Nas Masy Biodiv Indon 2: 219-225. Titan Arum (Amorphophallus titanum (Becc.) Becc.) merupakan tanaman asli dan endemik Sumatera. Tumbuhan ini pertama kali ditemukan pada tahun 1878 oleh ahli botani Florentine (Italia) yang bernama Odoardo Beccari. Perbungaannya yang berukuran raksasa dianggap menarik, sehingga Kebun Raya Bogor menjadikan tumbuhan ini sebagai jenis unggulan. Titan Arum secara alami tumbuh di hutan hujan atau perkebunan/pekarangan penduduk lokal. Di alam liar, habitat alami Titan Arum telah rusak akibat tekanan jumlah penduduk yang terus meningkat, atau banyak dibabat oleh penduduk karena dianggap sebagai gulma. Selain itu, degradasi hutan akibat pembalakan liar oleh penduduk juga menjadi ancaman lain bagi habitat tumbuhan tersebut. Kebun Raya Bogor telah memainkan peranan yang penting dalam konservasi A. titanum secara ex situ. Tumbuhan ini telah dikembangkan sejak tahun 1954 sebagai upaya konservasi ex situ. Kajian ini menampilkan data sekunder A. titanum yang berasal dari database koleksi tumbuhan Kebun Raya Bogor. Budi daya A. titanum tidak mudah sehingga menjadi tantangan bagi para praktisi hortikultura. Selain teknik budi daya, teknik penyerbukan juga merupakan tantangan dalam konservasi ex situ jenis ini. Penyerbukan sendiri dalam satu bunga mempunyai peluang keberhasilan yang sangat kecil, karena serbuk sari mulai masak ketika masa reseptif putik telah berakhir. Penyerbukan buatan dengan tangan menjadi alternatif untuk memproduksi biji. Kata kunci: Amorphophallus titanum, endemik, jenis unggulan, Kebun Raya Bogor, Sumatera Abstract. Puspitaningtyas DM, Ariati SR. 2016. Ex situ conservation of Amorphophallus titanum in Bogor Botanic Gardens, Indonesia. Pros Sem Nas Masy Biodiv Indon 2: 219-225. The Titan Arum (Amorphophallus titanum (Becc.) Becc.) is a native and an endemic plant in Sumatra. It was first discovered in 1878 by a Florentine (Italy) botanist, Odoardo Beccari. The gigantic inflorescence of this plant is regarded as a flagship species for Bogor Botanic Gardens. The Titan Arum naturally grows in the rainforest or local inhabitant plantation/yard. In the wild, the natural habitat of Titan Arum has been damaged as a result of population pressure continues to increase, or cut off by people because it is considered as weed. In addition, the forest degradation due to an illegal logging by people may also to be another threat to the habitat of the species. Bogor Botanic Gardens has been playing an important role in the ex situ conservation of A. titanum. This plant has been developed as ex situ conservation since 1954. This paper presented a secondary data of A. titanum from the plant collections database of Bogor Botanic Gardens. The cultivation of A. titanum is not easy, but it offers a challenge for the practitioners of a horticulturist. Besides their cultivation techniques, the pollination techniques are also to be a challenge in ex situ conservation of this species. A self-pollination is almost not possible because of the pollens only ripe when a receptive phase of pistil has finished. A hand-pollination is the other alternative to produce seeds. Keywords: Amorphophallus titanum, Bogor Botanic Gardens, endemic, flagship species, Sumatra INTRODUCTION Bogor Botanic Gardens was established on May 18 th , 1817 by Dr. C.G.C. Reinwardt as ‘s Lands Plantentuin te Buitenzorg (Levelink et al. 1996). Bogor Botanic Gardens has an important role as a center for plant conservation with three other annexes botanic gardens. Nowadays, the Bogor Botanic Gardens’s collection reaches approximately 20.000 plants which consist of approximately 3.750 species, including orchid collections (Sari et al. 2010). Currently, Indonesia, as a megadiversity country which has 10% of flowering plants in the world, has turned into a "hot spot country". In the effort to fulfill its mission of ex situ conservation, the botanical gardens has carried out flora exploration activities and plants inventory in Indonesia to study the plant diversity. One of the interest points in Bogor Botanic Gardens is the research on a rare plant of Amorphophallus titanum (Becc.) Becc. This iconic plant has been chosen as a flagship species of Bogor Botanic Gardens. It is an important symbol of the incredible diversity of the world’s plants, which needs efforts to be conserved by cultivation or in their natural habitats. By growing this species in botanic gardens, it can raise the awareness of the loss of its tropical forest in the island of Sumatra, a part of Indonesia.