Abstract:
Legume leaves used as green manure are a potential alternative to commercial
fertilizers for non-legume crop production. Therefore, many researches have
been conducted to understand the pattern of legume leaf decomposition and its
release of nutrients. A study on Gliricidia leaves decomposition was conducted
under laboratory conditions to elucidate the effect of grinding size of Gliricidia
leaves (S1 = ≤ 0.5 mm, S2 = 4 mm, and S3 = 9 mm) on microbial respiration and
N mineralization after incorporation in to the soil.
The early stages of the incubation were found to be significantly influenced
by the particle size of the Gliricidia leaves. Particle size S2 (4 mm) was reported
to exhibit the highest C and NH4
+
-N mineralization. However, in the case of
NO3
+
-N mineralization, no treatment was found to be significant. It could thus
be hypothesized that physical protection of finely ground (< 0.5 mm) Gliricidia
leaves was responsible for the relatively low rates of decomposition.