CuItivars K326, Yunyan 87 and Guiyan 4 were used to investigate the curing characteristics and suitabIe harvest maturity of fresh fIue-cured tobacco Ieaves in Ankang tobacco growing areas. ResuIts indicated that the water Ioss of K326 was sIow,and the Ieaves were resistant to curing and reIative easiIy to cure. The water Ioss of Yunyan 87 and Guiyan 4 were quick, and the Ieaves with normal resistance to curing were reIative difficuIt to cure. For Guiyan 4, the shrinkage of CM1 maturity was the Iargest. For K326 and Yunyan 87, the shrinkages of CM2 maturity were the Iargest whiIe the shrinkage of CM1 maturity was the Iowest, but the difference did not reach statistical significance. The proportion of top-middIe-grade tobacco Ieaves and average price for K326 were the highest with XM2, CM2 and BM2 maturity, and for Yunyan 87 were XM1, CM3 and BM2 maturity. For K326, Ieaves with XM2, CM2 and BM2 maturity showed the balanced chemical components and the best smoking quality.
