Before revision:  In this review, we provide an overview of what is currently known about the impact of residues on plant disease epidemics and describe how microbial interactions on these residues could be exploited to develop innovative crop protection strategies . Starting from the classical view of residues as a source of  inoculum, we  considered possibilities for the quantitative management of residues in crop protection.
After revision:  In this review, we provide an overview of what is currently known about the impact of residues on plant disease epidemics and describe how microbial interactions on these residues could be exploited to develop innovative crop protection strategies . Starting from the classical but still relevant view of crop residues as a source of inoculum, we considered possibilities for the quantitative management of residues in crop protection.