Dry matter accumulation and nutrient uptake in flue-cured tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum L.) N.K. Moustakas a, * , H. Ntzanis b a Agricultural University of Athens, Soil Science and Agr. Chemistry Lab., Iera Odos 75, Botanikos 118 55, Athens, Greece b Experimental Tobacco Station, Heraklitou 12, Agrinio 301 00, Greece Received 2 November 2004; accepted 8 November 2004 Abstract In a two-year field experiment using flue-cured tobacco, carried out in Agrinio (western Greece), dry matter accumulation (DMA) was studied in addition to the uptake of the nutrients nitrogen (N), potassium (K), phosphorous (P), calcium (Ca), and magnesium (Mg) on a weekly basis during the period from transplant to harvest over two cultivation seasons. Whole plants were sampled and divided into leaves, stalks and roots. These were dried, weighed and DMA and the nutrient uptake determined. Both DMA and nutrient uptake in plant parts as well as in whole plants follows a sigmoidal curve, accurately described by a logistic equation. During growth there is a period when DMA and nutrient uptake in plant parts occurs at an intense rate. The time of onset of this period and its duration varies with different plant parts. Maximum daily DMA occurs when 50% of the maximum plant DMA has been achieved. Maximum daily nutrient uptake in aerial parts of the plant occurs approximately 1 week prior to the maximum daily DMA. The period of rapid DMA and nutrient uptake in flue-cured tobacco coincides with the knee-high and budding (rapid qrowth and elongation) stage (41–75 DAT). Consequently during this period, the soil must have sufficient nutrients available to supply the needs of the plant. # 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. Keywords: Logistic equation; Rate of dry matter accumulation; Rate of nutrient uptake; Daily dry matter accumulation; Daily nutrient uptake 1. Introduction The life cycle of flue-cured tobacco is relatively short, ranging from 90 to 120 days and hence any window of opportunity for intervention to correct any nutrient deficits is brief (Miner and Tucker, 1990). Corrective fertilisation between 35 and 40 DAT, a stage when the plants are adapting to a new environment, is impractical due to the large size of the plants. In order for a rational fertilisation programme to be developed, in addition to the nutrient status of the soil in which the tobacco will be cultivated, the following information is required: (a) the maximum nutrient uptake determining the maximum yield, (b) the rate of nutrient uptake throughout the life span of the plant to www.elsevier.com/locate/fcr Field Crops Research 94 (2005) 1–13 * Corresponding author. Tel.: +30 210 5294099; fax: +30 210 5294092. E-mail address: nmoustakas@aua.gr (N.K. Moustakas). 0378-4290/$ – see front matter # 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. doi:10.1016/j.fcr.2004.11.002