A litterbag decomposition experiment was conducted to test the hypothe
sis that differences in crop residue management practices influence th
e size and activity of the microbial community that regulates residue
decomposition. Residues of wheat (Triticum aestivum), barley (Hordeum
vulgare) and lupin (Lupinus albus) were incorporated into soils in whi
ch cereal crop residues were previously managed by burning, removal or
incorporation for three years. Litterbags ere collected periodically
for analysis of mass loss and N content, total substrate-induced respi
ration (SIR), and direct counts of fungi and bacteria. Mass loss from
lupin residue (75%) was nearly twice that of either barley (42%) or wh
eat (38%) straw after the first 90 days of decomposition. The differen
ces in residue mass loss were also reflected in significantly higher r
ates of SIR and greater populations of bacteria and fungal hyphae on r
esidues of lupin than on wheat or barley straw. Temporal differences i
n wheat and barley SIR were positively correlated to residue N concent
rations. Across all treatments and residue types, SIR rate at 28 days
of decay was a good predictor of residue mass loss over the first 90 d
ays of decay. During the first 90 days of decay, wheat straw from the
incorporated treatment had 33% greater mass loss and a 50% greater dec
omposition rate than wheat from the burned or removed treatments. Cons
istent with these differences, microbial activity, as measured by SIR,
was nearly 30% higher on wheat straw from the incorporated treatment
than that of the burned or removed treatments. Although the effects we
re not significant, numbers of bacteria and fungi were also higher on
wheat straw from the incorporated treatment. Prior management of resid
ues also influenced the magnitude and timing of N fluxes from decaying
wheat straw. Wheat from the incorporated treatment had the greatest n
et N immobilisation in the early stages of decay (0-14 days) and the g
reatest net N mineralisation in the later stages of decay (90-150 days
). There were no significant effects of prior residue management on mi
crobial activity and decomposition of barley or lupin residues. This r
esidue-specific response to management may be explained by a prior con
ditioning of the soil microbial community to wheat straw which has a m
ore recalcitrant chemical composition (eg > lignin:N ratio) than that
of either barley or lupin residues. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science B.V.