Mulga (Acacia aneura) woodlands and open forests occupy about 150 Mha in Australia, and originally occupied 11.2 Mha in Queensland. Substantial areas (1.3 Mha) of the mulga vegetation have been cleared in Queensland, mostly for pasture production, but some areas are also used for cereal cropping. Twenty years after mulga clearing we found a significant loss of total soil organic C (28–35% from the 0–0.05 m depth) and light fraction C (>50% from the 0–1 m depth) from soil under pasture and cropping at a site in southern Queensland. We report here the changes in soil N and labile N pools in a paired-site study following conversion of mulga to buffel pasture (Cenchrus ciliaris) and cereal (mostly wheat) cropping for more than 20 years.

Conversion from mulga forest to pasture and cultivation resulted in greater losses of soil N than organic C in the top 0.1 m depths. As a result, C/N ratios in soil under both pasture and cropping were higher than soil under mulga, indicating a decline in soil organic matter quality after mulga clearing. Although land-use change had no significant effect on ¹⁵N natural abundance (δ¹⁵N) values of total soil N down to a depth of 1 m, δ¹⁵N values of wheat tops and roots indicated that the primary source of N under cropping was soil organic N, while that of buffel pasture was a mixed source of soil N and decomposed litter and root N. Light fraction N (<1.6 Mg/m³) declined by 60–70% throughout the 1 m soil profile under pasture and cropping, but it was ¹⁵N-enriched in these 2 land-use systems. The δ¹⁵N values of mulga phyllodes, twigs, and fine roots, indicated an input of atmospheric fixed N₂ that was estimated to be about 25 kg N/ha.year. However, the source and magnitude of this N resource needs to be confirmed.

Soil N losses were estimated to be 12 kg N/ha.year under pasture and 17 kg N/ha.year under cropping over a 20-year period. These findings raise the issue of the long-term sustainable use of cleared mulga areas for pasture and/or cropping. The labile C and N pools and N mineralised also declined, which would have an immediate adverse effect on soil fertility and plant productivity of cleared Mulga Lands, as well as reducing their potential as a soil sink for greenhouse gases.