In warm-climate grasslands, litter deposition and decomposition are one of the main pathway of nutrient cycling. The application of nitrogen (N) fertilizer or the inclusion of a legume in such grasslands modifies litter characteristics and chemical composition. This study evaluated how the N supply of palisadegrass [Urochloa brizantha (Hochst. ex A. Rich.) R.D. Webster] pastures affect litter characteristics two years after seeding. Treatments were palisadegrass fertilized or not with N (150 or 0 kg N ha⁻¹ year⁻¹) or mixed with the legume forage peanut (Arachis pintoi cv. Amarillo). The experimental period covered two consecutive rainy seasons. Nitrogen fertilization increased by 43 and 62% the existing litter mass (organic matter, OM), and by 32 and 23% the litter deposition rate compared to unfertilized palisadegrass or legume-grass mixtures, respectively. Both variables were affected by grazing cycle (GC), with low litter deposition rate (14 kg ha⁻¹ d⁻¹ OM) and existing litter mass (1390 kg ha⁻¹ OM) in the GC4 due to low rainfall. Nitrogen fertilized palisadegrass had greater litter N concentration (7.9 ± 0.4 g kg⁻¹ OM—C:N ratio 34 ± 2) than in monoculture or legume-grass mixtures (C:N ratios 45 and 58 ± 2, respectively). Our results indicated that N fertilization of palisadegrass increased litter accumulation, however, N fertilization was not a key driver of the litter decomposition rate, even though it increased litter N concentration. After 2 years of establishment, the proportion of forage peanut in the litter was still low, reducing the benefits of legume inclusion to enhance litter nutrient cycling in these pastures.

在温暖气候的草原上，凋落物的沉积和分解是养分循环的主要途径之一。在此类草原上施用氮肥或豆科植物会改变凋落物的特性和化学成分。这项研究评估了草木的氮供应（播种后两年）如何影响草木（Urochloa brizantha（Hochst。ex A. Rich。）RD Webster]草场。处理物palisadegrass受精或不与N（150或O千克氮公顷^-1年^-1）或与豆科牧草花生（混合多年生花生简历。阿马里洛）。实验期连续两个雨季。与未施肥的木瓜草或豆科植物的混合物相比，氮肥的施肥量使现有的凋落物质量（有机物，OM）增加了43％和62％，而凋落物的沉积速率分别增加了32％和23％。这两个变量均受放牧周期（GC）的影响，低降雨的凋落物沉积速率（14 kg ha ^-1 d ^-1 OM）和GC4中现有的凋落物质量（1390 kg ha ^-1 OM）。施氮的木瓜草中的凋落物N浓度更高（7.9±0.4 g kg ^-1OM-C：N比为34±2），而不是单一培养物或豆类草混合物（C：N比为45和58±2）。我们的结果表明，木瓜的氮肥增加了凋落物的积累，但是，氮肥并不是增加凋落物分解速率的主要驱动力，尽管氮肥增加了凋落物的氮含量。建立两年后，饲草花生在垫料中的比例仍然很低，降低了豆科植物包埋的益处，以增强这些牧场的垫料养分循环。