Photodegradation and microbial decomposition of soybean and maize crop residues before and after harvest

Autores
Cabrera, Felipe; Araujo, Patricia Ines; Vivanco, Lucía
Año de publicación
2026
Idioma
inglés
Tipo de recurso
artículo
Estado
versión publicada
Descripción
The role of sunlight and its interaction with microorganisms in crop residue decomposition is largely unknown in agroecosystems. We evaluated soybean and maize residue decomposition before harvest, when plants were senescent and standing, and after harvest, during winter fallow, when residues remained on the soil surface. We hypothesized that (1) sunlight dominates decomposition before harvest, whereas microbes become more relevant after harvest, and (2) soybean residues decompose faster than maize due to higher susceptibility to sunlight-driven decay before harvest and greater nutrient content, enhancing microbial decomposition after harvest. We conducted a field experiment in the Argentine Pampas, manipulating sunlight and microbes with filters and a biocide, respectively. Contrary to our expectation, decomposition before harvest was significantly accelerated by both sunlight and microbes additively, resulting in carbon losses of approximately 141 kg C ha⁻¹ in maize and 108 kg C ha⁻¹ in soybean leaf residues. Sunlight alone accounted for 15–24 % of total leaf mass loss, while microbes contributed 30–54 %. The results indicated that sunlight acted through photodegradation rather than photofacilitation of microbial decomposition. Before harvest, decomposition was twice as fast as after harvest, with no effect of sunlight or microbes. Soybean residues decomposed faster than maize due to greater susceptibility to sunlight (canopy structure and lignin) and enhanced microbial activity before harvest, and lower mechanical resistance after harvest. These findings highlight that both sunlight and microbes substantially contribute to residue turnover, particularly of standing dead crops before harvest, a critical yet often overlooked stage in cropland carbon dynamics.
EEA Pergamino
Fil: Cabrera, Felipe. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Instituto de Investigaciones Fisiológicas y Ecológicas Vinculadas a la Agricultura; Argentina. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Instituto de Investigaciones Fisiológicas y Ecológicas Vinculadas a la Agricultura; Argentina
Fil: Cabrera, Felipe. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Agronomía. Departamento de Métodos Cuantitativos y Sistemas de Información; Argentina
Fil: Araujo, Patricia Inés. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Pergamino. Grupo de Gestión Ambiental; Argentina
Fil: Araujo, Patricia Inés. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina
Fil: Vivanco, Lucía. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Instituto de Investigaciones Fisiológicas y Ecológicas Vinculadas a la Agricultura; Argentina. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Instituto de Investigaciones Fisiológicas y Ecológicas Vinculadas a la Agricultura; Argentina
Fil: Vivanco, Lucía. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Agronomía. Departamento de Recursos Naturales y Ambiente. Cátedra de Ecología; Argentina
Fuente
Agriculture, Ecosystems and Environment 401 : 110293. (May 2026)
Materia
Manejo del cultivo
Crop management
Suelo
Soil
Residuo de cosechas
Crop residues
Agroecosistemas
Agroecosystems
soja
Soybeans
Maíz
Maize
Ciclo del carbono
Carbon cycle
Argentina
Litter decomposition
Solar radiation
Microbial decomposition
Nivel de accesibilidad
acceso restringido
Condiciones de uso
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/
Repositorio
INTA Digital (INTA)
Institución
Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria
OAI Identificador
oai:localhost:20.500.12123/25527
Acceder
id INTADig_72261b5f9246e9b5da4802e15aa84c62
oai_identifier_str oai:localhost:20.500.12123/25527
network_acronym_str INTADig
repository_id_str l
network_name_str INTA Digital (INTA)
spelling Photodegradation and microbial decomposition of soybean and maize crop residues before and after harvestCabrera, FelipeAraujo, Patricia InesVivanco, LucíaManejo del cultivoCrop managementSueloSoilResiduo de cosechasCrop residuesAgroecosistemasAgroecosystemssojaSoybeansMaízMaizeCiclo del carbonoCarbon cycleArgentinaLitter decompositionSolar radiationMicrobial decompositionThe role of sunlight and its interaction with microorganisms in crop residue decomposition is largely unknown in agroecosystems. We evaluated soybean and maize residue decomposition before harvest, when plants were senescent and standing, and after harvest, during winter fallow, when residues remained on the soil surface. We hypothesized that (1) sunlight dominates decomposition before harvest, whereas microbes become more relevant after harvest, and (2) soybean residues decompose faster than maize due to higher susceptibility to sunlight-driven decay before harvest and greater nutrient content, enhancing microbial decomposition after harvest. We conducted a field experiment in the Argentine Pampas, manipulating sunlight and microbes with filters and a biocide, respectively. Contrary to our expectation, decomposition before harvest was significantly accelerated by both sunlight and microbes additively, resulting in carbon losses of approximately 141 kg C ha⁻¹ in maize and 108 kg C ha⁻¹ in soybean leaf residues. Sunlight alone accounted for 15–24 % of total leaf mass loss, while microbes contributed 30–54 %. The results indicated that sunlight acted through photodegradation rather than photofacilitation of microbial decomposition. Before harvest, decomposition was twice as fast as after harvest, with no effect of sunlight or microbes. Soybean residues decomposed faster than maize due to greater susceptibility to sunlight (canopy structure and lignin) and enhanced microbial activity before harvest, and lower mechanical resistance after harvest. These findings highlight that both sunlight and microbes substantially contribute to residue turnover, particularly of standing dead crops before harvest, a critical yet often overlooked stage in cropland carbon dynamics.EEA PergaminoFil: Cabrera, Felipe. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Instituto de Investigaciones Fisiológicas y Ecológicas Vinculadas a la Agricultura; Argentina. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Instituto de Investigaciones Fisiológicas y Ecológicas Vinculadas a la Agricultura; ArgentinaFil: Cabrera, Felipe. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Agronomía. Departamento de Métodos Cuantitativos y Sistemas de Información; ArgentinaFil: Araujo, Patricia Inés. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Pergamino. Grupo de Gestión Ambiental; ArgentinaFil: Araujo, Patricia Inés. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Vivanco, Lucía. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Instituto de Investigaciones Fisiológicas y Ecológicas Vinculadas a la Agricultura; Argentina. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Instituto de Investigaciones Fisiológicas y Ecológicas Vinculadas a la Agricultura; ArgentinaFil: Vivanco, Lucía. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Agronomía. Departamento de Recursos Naturales y Ambiente. Cátedra de Ecología; ArgentinaElsevier2026-03-19T14:31:47Z2026-03-19T14:31:47Z2026-05info:eu-repo/semantics/articleinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersionhttp://purl.org/coar/resource_type/c_6501info:ar-repo/semantics/articuloapplication/pdfhttp://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12123/25527https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S01678809260008000167-8809https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agee.2026.110293Agriculture, Ecosystems and Environment 401 : 110293. (May 2026)reponame:INTA Digital (INTA)instname:Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuariaenginfo:eu-repo/semantics/restrictedAccesshttp://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0)2026-05-07T11:53:11Zoai:localhost:20.500.12123/25527instacron:INTAInstitucionalhttp://repositorio.inta.gob.ar/Organismo científico-tecnológicoNo correspondehttp://repositorio.inta.gob.ar/oai/requesttripaldi.nicolas@inta.gob.arArgentinaNo correspondeNo correspondeNo correspondeopendoar:l2026-05-07 11:53:12.137INTA Digital (INTA) - Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuariafalse
dc.title.none.fl_str_mv Photodegradation and microbial decomposition of soybean and maize crop residues before and after harvest
title Photodegradation and microbial decomposition of soybean and maize crop residues before and after harvest
spellingShingle Photodegradation and microbial decomposition of soybean and maize crop residues before and after harvest
Cabrera, Felipe
Manejo del cultivo
Crop management
Suelo
Soil
Residuo de cosechas
Crop residues
Agroecosistemas
Agroecosystems
soja
Soybeans
Maíz
Maize
Ciclo del carbono
Carbon cycle
Argentina
Litter decomposition
Solar radiation
Microbial decomposition
title_short Photodegradation and microbial decomposition of soybean and maize crop residues before and after harvest
title_full Photodegradation and microbial decomposition of soybean and maize crop residues before and after harvest
title_fullStr Photodegradation and microbial decomposition of soybean and maize crop residues before and after harvest
title_full_unstemmed Photodegradation and microbial decomposition of soybean and maize crop residues before and after harvest
title_sort Photodegradation and microbial decomposition of soybean and maize crop residues before and after harvest
dc.creator.none.fl_str_mv Cabrera, Felipe
Araujo, Patricia Ines
Vivanco, Lucía
author Cabrera, Felipe
author_facet Cabrera, Felipe
Araujo, Patricia Ines
Vivanco, Lucía
author_role author
author2 Araujo, Patricia Ines
Vivanco, Lucía
author2_role author
author
dc.subject.none.fl_str_mv Manejo del cultivo
Crop management
Suelo
Soil
Residuo de cosechas
Crop residues
Agroecosistemas
Agroecosystems
soja
Soybeans
Maíz
Maize
Ciclo del carbono
Carbon cycle
Argentina
Litter decomposition
Solar radiation
Microbial decomposition
topic Manejo del cultivo
Crop management
Suelo
Soil
Residuo de cosechas
Crop residues
Agroecosistemas
Agroecosystems
soja
Soybeans
Maíz
Maize
Ciclo del carbono
Carbon cycle
Argentina
Litter decomposition
Solar radiation
Microbial decomposition
dc.description.none.fl_txt_mv The role of sunlight and its interaction with microorganisms in crop residue decomposition is largely unknown in agroecosystems. We evaluated soybean and maize residue decomposition before harvest, when plants were senescent and standing, and after harvest, during winter fallow, when residues remained on the soil surface. We hypothesized that (1) sunlight dominates decomposition before harvest, whereas microbes become more relevant after harvest, and (2) soybean residues decompose faster than maize due to higher susceptibility to sunlight-driven decay before harvest and greater nutrient content, enhancing microbial decomposition after harvest. We conducted a field experiment in the Argentine Pampas, manipulating sunlight and microbes with filters and a biocide, respectively. Contrary to our expectation, decomposition before harvest was significantly accelerated by both sunlight and microbes additively, resulting in carbon losses of approximately 141 kg C ha⁻¹ in maize and 108 kg C ha⁻¹ in soybean leaf residues. Sunlight alone accounted for 15–24 % of total leaf mass loss, while microbes contributed 30–54 %. The results indicated that sunlight acted through photodegradation rather than photofacilitation of microbial decomposition. Before harvest, decomposition was twice as fast as after harvest, with no effect of sunlight or microbes. Soybean residues decomposed faster than maize due to greater susceptibility to sunlight (canopy structure and lignin) and enhanced microbial activity before harvest, and lower mechanical resistance after harvest. These findings highlight that both sunlight and microbes substantially contribute to residue turnover, particularly of standing dead crops before harvest, a critical yet often overlooked stage in cropland carbon dynamics.
EEA Pergamino
Fil: Cabrera, Felipe. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Instituto de Investigaciones Fisiológicas y Ecológicas Vinculadas a la Agricultura; Argentina. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Instituto de Investigaciones Fisiológicas y Ecológicas Vinculadas a la Agricultura; Argentina
Fil: Cabrera, Felipe. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Agronomía. Departamento de Métodos Cuantitativos y Sistemas de Información; Argentina
Fil: Araujo, Patricia Inés. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Pergamino. Grupo de Gestión Ambiental; Argentina
Fil: Araujo, Patricia Inés. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina
Fil: Vivanco, Lucía. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Instituto de Investigaciones Fisiológicas y Ecológicas Vinculadas a la Agricultura; Argentina. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Instituto de Investigaciones Fisiológicas y Ecológicas Vinculadas a la Agricultura; Argentina
Fil: Vivanco, Lucía. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Agronomía. Departamento de Recursos Naturales y Ambiente. Cátedra de Ecología; Argentina
description The role of sunlight and its interaction with microorganisms in crop residue decomposition is largely unknown in agroecosystems. We evaluated soybean and maize residue decomposition before harvest, when plants were senescent and standing, and after harvest, during winter fallow, when residues remained on the soil surface. We hypothesized that (1) sunlight dominates decomposition before harvest, whereas microbes become more relevant after harvest, and (2) soybean residues decompose faster than maize due to higher susceptibility to sunlight-driven decay before harvest and greater nutrient content, enhancing microbial decomposition after harvest. We conducted a field experiment in the Argentine Pampas, manipulating sunlight and microbes with filters and a biocide, respectively. Contrary to our expectation, decomposition before harvest was significantly accelerated by both sunlight and microbes additively, resulting in carbon losses of approximately 141 kg C ha⁻¹ in maize and 108 kg C ha⁻¹ in soybean leaf residues. Sunlight alone accounted for 15–24 % of total leaf mass loss, while microbes contributed 30–54 %. The results indicated that sunlight acted through photodegradation rather than photofacilitation of microbial decomposition. Before harvest, decomposition was twice as fast as after harvest, with no effect of sunlight or microbes. Soybean residues decomposed faster than maize due to greater susceptibility to sunlight (canopy structure and lignin) and enhanced microbial activity before harvest, and lower mechanical resistance after harvest. These findings highlight that both sunlight and microbes substantially contribute to residue turnover, particularly of standing dead crops before harvest, a critical yet often overlooked stage in cropland carbon dynamics.
publishDate 2026
dc.date.none.fl_str_mv 2026-03-19T14:31:47Z
2026-03-19T14:31:47Z
2026-05
dc.type.none.fl_str_mv info:eu-repo/semantics/article
info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion
http://purl.org/coar/resource_type/c_6501
info:ar-repo/semantics/articulo
format article
status_str publishedVersion
dc.identifier.none.fl_str_mv http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12123/25527
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0167880926000800
0167-8809
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agee.2026.110293
url http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12123/25527
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0167880926000800
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agee.2026.110293
identifier_str_mv 0167-8809
dc.language.none.fl_str_mv eng
language eng
dc.rights.none.fl_str_mv info:eu-repo/semantics/restrictedAccess
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/
Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0)
eu_rights_str_mv restrictedAccess
rights_invalid_str_mv http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/
Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0)
dc.format.none.fl_str_mv application/pdf
dc.publisher.none.fl_str_mv Elsevier
publisher.none.fl_str_mv Elsevier
dc.source.none.fl_str_mv Agriculture, Ecosystems and Environment 401 : 110293. (May 2026)
reponame:INTA Digital (INTA)
instname:Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria
reponame_str INTA Digital (INTA)
collection INTA Digital (INTA)
instname_str Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria
repository.name.fl_str_mv INTA Digital (INTA) - Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria
repository.mail.fl_str_mv tripaldi.nicolas@inta.gob.ar
_version_ 1864547139573514240
score 13.1485815

Publicaciones similares