Soil biodiversity regulates ecosystem structure and functioning through changing biomass,activity, community composition and interactions among soil biota. This study aimed toexplore the relationships between soil food webs, soil properties and fruit productivity inplantations of Chinese star anise (Illicium verum Hook). We anticipated that this com parison would allow us to identify key indicators of soil ecosystem associated with fruityield. We found that soil microbial biomass carbon (MBC), soil microbial biomass nitrogen(MBN), bacterial abundance (B) and fungal abundance (F) derived from phospholipid fattyacid profifiling, bacteriovores abundance (Ba), fungivores abundance (Fu) and F/B ratio wereresilient to fruit productivity. By contrast, MBC: MBN ratio, total nematode abundance, F/Fuand the correlation between F/B, Fu/Ba and Fu/(BaþFu) were responsive to fruit produc tivity. In conclusion, MBC: MBN and trophic linkages in the detritus food web areimportant determinants of ecosystem functioning at local scale. Very small change incommunity composition or interactions among components within soil food webs coulddisturb some ecosystem processes and ultimately affect plant's productivity. Therefore, wecan enhance ecosystem functioning using management practice which is conducive torestore the community composition of soil biota and interactions among componentswithin soil food webs to those of adjacent healthy natural ecosystem.