The effects of soil and topography on the responses of soil respiration (R_s) to climatic variables must be investigated in the southeastern mountainous areas of China due to the rapid land-use change from forest to agriculture. In this study, we investigated the response of R_s to soil temperature (ST), precipitation over the previous seven days (AP7), and soil water content (SWC) across two hillslopes that had different land uses: a tea garden (TG) and a bamboo forest (BF). Meanwhile, the roles of soil properties including soil clay content and total nitrogen (TN), and topography including elevation, profile curvature (PRC), and slope on the different responses of R_s to these climatic variables were investigated. Results showed that mean R_s on the BF hillslope (2.21 umol C m⁻² s⁻¹) was 1.71 times of that on the TG hillslope (1.29 umol C m⁻² s⁻¹). Soil clay content, elevation, and PRC had negative correlations (p < 0.05) with spatial variation of R_s, and ST was positively correlated (p < 0.01) with temporal variation of R_s on both hillslopes. Across both hillslopes ST explained 33%–73% and AP7 explained 24%–38% of the temporal variations in R_s. The mean temperature sensitivities (Q_10s) of R_s were 2.02 and 3.22, respectively, on the TG and BF hillslopes. The Q₁₀ was positively correlated (p < 0.05) with the temporal mean of SWC and TN, and negatively correlated (p < 0.05) with clay and slope. The mean AP7 sensitivities (a concept similar to Q₁₀) were greatly affected by clay and PRC. When R_s was normalized to that at 10 °C, power or quadratic relationships between R_s and SWC were observed in different sites, and the SWC explained 12%–32% of the temporal variation in R_s. When ST and SWC were integrated and considered, improved explanations (45%–81%) were achieved for the R_s temporal variation. In addition, clay and elevation had vital influences on the responses of R_s to SWC. These results highlight the influences of soil, topographic features, and land use on the spatial variations of the R_s, as well as on the responses of R_s to different climatic variables, which will supplement the understanding of controlling mechanisms of R_s on tea and bamboo land-use types in Southeastern China.