Sugarcane crop residues (known as trash) contain substantial amounts of nitrogen (N) and other nutrients. While trash is commonly burnt before harvest in most sugarcane producing countries, there is a growing trend for crops to be harvested green (i.e. without burning) and trash retained. N cycling will be greatly affected by this changed practice. The availability of N in trash is complicated because most of the N cycles through the soil organic matter. To gain insights into the impacts of trash management on sugarcane production and the long-term fate of N contained in trash, a simulation study was conducted with the APSIM-Sugarcane cropping systems model. Simulations were conducted over 100 years for three different soil types combined with climatic data from five locations in the Australian sugar industry, the industry with the most advanced adoption of green cane harvesting and trash retention. Trash management and N fertiliser application rates were varied in the simulations. The simulation study showed that sugarcane yields have potential to respond positively to trash retention in the range of environments considered. However, achieving these higher potential yields will require that N fertiliser rates not be reduced following the switch from burning to retaining residues. The results of the simulations also indicate that average environmental losses of N are likely to be greater if trash is retained at all rates of N fertiliser applications and so particular care should be exercised to avoid over-application of N. Simulation results also illustrate a potential negative, short-term impact of trash retention on sugarcane yields due to the immobilisation of N by the decomposing trash. Implications of this immobilisation on the results of short-term trash management experiments, and the transition from burning to retaining trash on farms are discussed.