Summary
The critical concentration of a mineral element in plants is usually defined by reference to the curve relating yield to plant nutrient concentration. This curve alters shape depending on the stage of growth, species, and other factors such as light and temperature, so that the critical concentration also varies. It is shown that this effect could arise from two simple, but reasonable assumptions: first, that the percentage depression of growth rate due to nutrient deficiency is related by a simple diminishing-returns type function to plant nutrient concentration in a manner which is independent of growth stage: and second, that the absolute growth rate of non-limited plants declines as their weight increases beyond a certain value. If the critical concentration were to be defined in terms of percentage growth rate depression, it is possible that it would be found to be much less variable than it now seems. re]19760730
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Scaife, M.A., Barnes, A. The relationship between crop yield and petiole nitrate concentration at various growth stages. Plant Soil 46, 705–712 (1977). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00015936
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00015936