It has been predicted that fungi will respond differently from bacteria to rewetting dry soil due to higher resistance to desiccation (Harris, 1981) and a lesser ability to rapidly use labile C (Rousk and Bååth, 2011). Assuming that survival would be indicated by the immediate response (within a few hours of rewetting), fungal growth decreased less than bacterial growth in both the dried treatments compared to that in the constantly moist control soil (Figs. 2 and 3). Fungi thus appeared more resistant to drying than bacteria. The recovery of growth after rewetting was, also as predicted, slower for fungi than for the bacteria.