Microbial communities in sub-Saharan Africa

We attempted to compare microbial community responses to an organic matter application between a fallowed and a continuously cultivated soil in sub-Saharan Africa. Soils received either a one-year fallow practice after maize cultivation or a continuous maize cultivation were sampled from the fields at Lilongwe University of Agriculture and Natural Resources (LUANAR), Malawi. We performed a 33-days incubation study using the soils. Chopped rice straw was incorporated into the soils at the beginning of the incubation period. Microbial community analyses at different timings (day 3 and 33 after the rice straw application) showed the shifts of organic matter decomposing microbial communities in the soils.