To exploit the potential of ecological intensification during sunflower cropping, it is crucial to understand the potential synergies between crop management and ecosystem services. We therefore examined the effect of pollination intensification on sunflower yield and productivity under various levels of soil fertilization over two seasons in the eastern Free State, South Africa. We manipulated soil fertility with fertilizer applications and pollination with exclusion bags. We found a synergetic effect between pollination and soil fertilization whereby increasing pollination intensity led to a far higher impact on sunflower yield when the soil had been fertilized. Specifically, the intensification of insect pollination increased seed yield by approximately 0.4 ton/ha on nutrient poor soil and by approximately 1.7 ton/ha on moderately fertilized soil. Our findings suggest that sunflower crops on adequate balanced soil fertility will receive abundant insect pollination and may gain more from both synergies than crops grown in areas with degraded soil fertility.

中文翻译：

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土壤施肥协同增强授粉服务在旱地条件下提高向日葵种子产量的影响

为了利用向日葵种植过程中生态集约化的潜力，了解作物管理和生态系统服务之间的潜在协同作用至关重要。因此，我们研究了在南非东部自由州两个季节不同土壤施肥水平下授粉强化对向日葵产量和生产力的影响。我们通过施肥和用排除袋授粉来控制土壤肥力。我们发现授粉和土壤施肥之间存在协同效应，当土壤施肥时，增加授粉强度会对向日葵产量产生更大的影响。具体而言，昆虫授粉的强化使营养贫瘠土壤上的种子产量增加了约 0.4 吨/公顷，增加了约 1 吨。在适度施肥的土壤上 7 吨/公顷。我们的研究结果表明，在土壤肥力充足平衡的情况下，向日葵作物将获得大量昆虫授粉，并且可能比在土壤肥力退化地区种植的作物从这两种协同作用中获得更多收益。