DECAY OF LEAF LITTER BY COLLYBIA-PERONATA

C. peronata decayed birch leaves faster than oak or beech. Beech leaves contained the greatest amounts of extractable phenols but variable phenol contents appear to have little effect on rate of decay. After 10 wk birch leaves lost 27.3% of their total dry matter, including 32.2% of all structural material. Loss of structural material amounted to 89.7% of all dry matter lost. Birch leaves lost 33.1 and 27.1% of the total cellulose and hemicellulose content, respectively. Loss of cellulose represented 46.1% of the total structural material lost. Birch leaves decayed fastest when C. peronata grew in association with the naturally occurring leaf microflora. Here, loss of dry matter increased to 36.3% and loss of structural materials to 38.2%. These results are discussed in relation to the ecology of C. peronata and the decay of leaf litter.