Shredded straw of Miscanthus was composted in 800-L boxes with different amounts of pig slurry added as nitrogen source. The impact of the different initial C/N ratios (11, 35, 47, 50, and 54) on the composting process and the end product was evaluated by examining chemical and microbiological parameters during 12 months of composting. Low initial C/N ratios caused a fast degradation of fibers during the first three months of composting (hemicellulose: 50-80%, cellulose: 40-60%), while high initial C/N ratios resulted in 10-20% degradation of both hemicellulose and cellulose. These differences were reflected in the microbial biomass and respiration, which initially were higher in low C/N treatments than in high C/N treatments. After 12 months of composting, this situation was reversed. Composts with high initial C/N ratios had high microbial biomass (15-20 mg ATP g-1 OM) and respiration rates (200 mg CO2 h-1 g-1 OM) compared to treatments with low initial C/N ratios (less than 10 mg ATP g-1 OM and 25 mg CO2 h-1 g-1 OM). This could be explained by the microorganisms being nitrogen limited in the high C/N ratio treatments. In the low C/N ratio treatments, without nitrogen limitation, the high activity in the beginning decreased with time because of exhaustion of easily available carbon. Different nitrogen availability was also seen in the nitrification patterns, since nitrate was only measured in significant amounts in the treatments with initial C/N ratios of 11 and 35. The microbial community structure (measured as phospholipid fatty acid, PLFA, profile) was also affected by the initial C/N ratios, with lower fungal/bacterial ratios in the low compared to the high C/N treatments after 12 months of composting. However, in the low C/N treatments higher levels of PLFAs indicative of thermophilic gram-positive bacteria were found compared to the high C/N treatments. This was caused by the initial heating phase being longer in the low than in the high C/N treatments. The different fungal/bacterial ratios could also be explained by the initial heating phase, since a significant correlation between this ratio and heat generated during the initial composting phase was found.

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N20 emissions and denitrification N‐losses. precipitation, air temperature, soil moisture, bulk density and content of mineral N were monitored in 9 different agricultural soils in 6 European countries throughout the vegetation period (April to September) 1992 and 1993. N2O emissions and denitrification N‐losses were log‐normal distributed, reflecting high temporal changes. While small flux rates (< 2 g N ha−1 d−1) were detectable every day, high rates (> 10 g N ha−1 d−1) were measured after fertilization. An attempt to relate the emission variables to climate and soil variables was made through the use of correlation analysis. The mean N20 emissions from soil were significantly correlated with the soil properties clay, organic C and mineral N content and the amount of applied mineral N fertilizer. The best prediction of the N2O emission rates (r2 = 0.734) was achieved by multiple linear regression using the soil parameter clay and mineral N. Only 50% of the observed variation could be explained by the factors Corg and mineral N, which describe the substrate availability for microbial processes. No successful statistical model was found for the prediction of denitrification N‐losses.