“…Thus far, these experiments have revealed indirect and nonlinear responses (Bowden et al, ; Lajtha, Bowden, & Nadelhoffer, ; Lajtha, Townsend, et al, ) in total C and mineral‐associated SOM pools, including evidence for context‐specific dynamics and priming. Overall, the mineral‐associated fractions are reported to be less vulnerable to decomposition and less responsive to C accumulation from aboveground inputs, indicating that direct litter addition does not necessarily result in rapid or direct accumulation of additional C in the putatively “stable” pools (Bowden et al, ; Lajtha, Bowden, & Nadelhoffer, ; Lajtha, Townsend, et al, ) even when soils are not “carbon saturated” (Mayzelle et al, ). Moreover, the variability of responses among sites may be due to differences in litter decomposition rate as controlled by climate (Fekete et al, ), litter quality (Bowden et al, ), and soil mineralogy that in turn drive the litter‐to‐soil pathway.…”