Rottboelia exaltata is considered one of the twelve worst weeds infesting sugarcane, because, in general, it does not allow suitable crop growth between sugarcane rows at weed density above 10/m². Dry matter production, distribution and macro-nutrient accumulation in R. exaltata were studied under greenhouse conditions. The plants were grown in pots filled with washed and sieved river sand, irrigated daily with Hoagland & Arnon complete nutrient solution at 50% of the original concentration. The first evaluation was carried out 21 days after seedling emergence (DAE), and the others every 14 days. The dry matter of all plant parts was determined. The material was ground and analyzed for macronutrient content. The results indicated that the plant presented slow growth up to 63 DAE, followed by fast growth from that date until the end of the experiment (133 DAE). Maximum accumulation occurred at 133 DAE, when a plant of R. exaltata accumulated 87.18 g of dry matter. At 133 DAE, about 34.60% of the dry matter was allocated on the roots, 40.29% on the stems and sheaths, 15.13% on the leaves, and 8.35% on the inflorescences. The total accumulation of macronutrients by R. exaltata was increasingly higher during plant cycle. At 77 DAE, a R. exaltata plant accumulated 7.14 g dry matter; 132.2 mg K; 81.5 mg N; 32.3 mg Ca; 18.8 g P; 18.6 mg Mg and 10.1 mg S.
weeds; R. exaltata; macronutrients
