The knowledge of plant reproductive and vegetative periods is extremely important for seed harvesting and seedling production. Interactions between the Cerrado (Brazilian Savanna) biota and fire are of extreme interest because these factors are intimately related and could be determinant in plant populations maintenance. For 12 months, we studied the phenology of two Cerrado native species (Enterolobium gummiferum (Mart.) J.F.Macbr. and Caryocar brasiliense Cambess.) under two fire regimes: the first was burned every two years on August (PBM) in a control site without fire for 14 years (PC). Uniformity tests were made to verify seasonality of each phenological phase. The model selection with Akaike information criterion was made using climatic variables of the study region to identify which variables better describe the phenological phases. Fruit production was estimated for both treatments. Almost every phenophase showed production peaks, except for leaf sprout of C. brasiliense in PC and leaf fall of C. brasiliense in the two treatments, and E. gummiferum in PC. In general, the phenological behaviour of both species did not differ from other studies. However, fire retarded the leaf renewal and inhibited the reproductive phases of C. brasiliense, similar to previous results for other Cerrado native species in regions with burn incidence.
Cerrado (Brazilian Savanna); Earpod tree; Pequi; seasonality
